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MAYNARD’S 

iglish- Classic -Series 


I! 






TANGLEWOOD TALES 




SELECTED 




Nathaniel Hawthorne 


NEW YORK; 

Maynard, Merrill, & Co., 

29 , 31 , and 33 East Nineteenth Street. 





ENGLISH CLASSIC SERIES, 

FOR 

Classes in English Literature, Beading, Grammar, etc. 

EDITED BY EMINENT ENGLISH AND AMERIOAN SCHOLARS. 


Each Volume contains a Sketch of the Author's Life, Prefatory and 
Explanatory Notes, etc., etc., 


1 Byron's Prophecy of Dante. 

(Cantos I. and II.) 

2 Milton's I.’ Allegro, and II Fen- 

seroso. 

3 Lord Bacon’s Essays, Civil and 

Moral. (Selected.) 

4 Byron’s Prisoner of Chillon. 

5 Moore’s Fire Worshippers. 

(Lalla Rookh. Selected.) 

6 Goldsmith’s Deserted Village. 

7 Scott’s Marmion. (Selections 

from Canto VI.) 

8 Scott’s Bay of the Bast Minstrel. 

(Introduction and Canto I.) 

9 Burns’sCotter’sSaturdayNight, 

and other Poems. 

10 Crabbe’s The Village. 

11 Campbell’s Pleasures of Hope. 

(Abridgment of Part I.) 

12 Macaulay’s Essay on Bunyan’s 

Pilgrim’s Progress. 

13 Macaulay’s Armada, and other 

Poems. 

14 Shakespeare’s Merchant of Ve- 

nice. (Selections from Acts I., 
III., and IV.) 

15 Goldsmith’s Traveller. 

16 Hogg’s Queen’s Wake, and Kil- 

meny. 

17 Coleridge’s Ancient Mariner. 

18 Addison’s Sir Roger de Cover- 

ley. 

19 Gray’s Elegy in a Country 

Churchyard. 

20 Scott’s Bady of the Bake. (Canto 

I.) 

21 Shakespeare’s As You Bike It, 

etc. (Selections.) 

22 Shakespeare’s King John, and 

Richard II. (Selections.) 

23 Shakespeare’s Henry IV., Hen- 

ry V., Henry VI. (Selections.) 

24 Shakespeare’s Henry VIII., and 

Julius Caesar. (Selections.) 

25 Wordsworth’s Excursion. (Bk.I.) 

26 Pope’s Essay on Criticism. 

27 Spenser’sFaerieQueene. (Cantos 

I. and II.) 

28 Cowper’s Task. (Book I.) 

29 Milton’s Comus. 

30 Tennyson’s Enoch Arden, The 

Botus Eaters, Ulysses, and 
Tithonus. 


31 Irving’s Sketch Book. (Selec- 

tions.) 

32 Dickens’s Christmas Carol, 

(Condensed.) 

33 Carlyle’s Hero as a Prophet. 

34 Macaulay’s Warren Hastings. 

(Condensed.) 

35 Goldsmith’s Vicar of Wake- 

field. (Condensed.) 

36 Tennyson’s The Two Voices, 

and A Dream of Fair Women. 

37 Memory Quotations. 

38 Cavalier Poets. 

39 Dryden’s Alexander’s Feast, 

and MacFlecknoe. 

40 Keats’s The Eve of St. Agnes. 

41 Irving.’s Begend of Sleepy Hol- 

low. 

42 Bamb’s Tales from Shake- 

speare. 

4 3 Be Row’s How to Teach Read- 
ing. 

44 Webster’s Bunker Hill Ora- 

tions. 

45 The Academy OrthoBpist. A 

Manual of Pronunciation. 

46 Milton’s Bycidas, and Hymn 

on the Nativity. 

47 Bryant’s Thanatopsis, and other 

Poems. 

48 Ruskin’s * 1 Modern Painters. 

(Selections.) 

49 The Shakespeare Speaker. 

50 Thackeray’s Roundabout Pa- 

pers. 

51 W'ebster’s Oration on Adams 

and Jefferson. 

52 Brown’s Rab and his Friends. 

53 Morris’s Bife and Death of 

Jason. 

54 Burke’s Speech on American 

Taxation. 

55 Pope’s Rape of the Bock. 

56 Tennyson’s Elaine. 

57 Tennyson’s In Memoriam. 

58 Church’s Story of the iEneid. 

59 Church’s Story of the Iliad. 

60 Swift’s Gulliver’s Voyage to 

Billiput. 

61 Macaulay’s Essay on Bord Ba- 

con. (Condensed.) 

62 The Alcestis of Euripides. Eng- 

lish Version by Rev. R. Potter, M. A. 


( Additional numbers on next page.) 



MAYNARD’S ENGLISH CLASSIC SERIES.— No. 217 

TWO 

TANGLEWOOD TALES 



THE DRAGON’S TEETH, THE MINOTAUR 



NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE 

'I 


y 


WITH BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH AND NOTES 



NEW YORK 

MAYNARD, MERRILL, & CO. 

New Series, No. 92. June 1,1899. Published monthly. Subscription Price, 
$1.25. Entered at Post Office, New York, as Second-class Matter. 

L, 



NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE 

31712 


Copyright, 1899 



by Maynard, Merrill, & Co. 


bWv 








Biographical Sketch 


Nathaniel Hawthorne came of a stern, New England 
ancestry. The founder of the family in this country, William 
Hathorne (so spelled, but pronounced nearly as afterwards 
changed by Hawthorne), emigrated from England in 1630, 
and became a man of some prominence in the new country, 
a magistrate and deputy in the colonial assembly. His son, 
Judge John Hawthorne, was prominent in the Salem witch- 
craft persecutions, and earned an unenviable reputation for 
harsh judgments. His nature is well shown by the following 
account of a trial at which he presided. 

Of one accused woman brought before him, the husband 
wrote: “She was forced to stand with her arms stretched 
out. I requested that I might hold one of her hands, but it 
was declined me ; then she desired me to wipe the tears from 
her eyes, which I did ; then she desired that she might lean 
herself on me, saying she should faint. Justice Hathorne 
replied she had strength enough to torture these persons, and 
she should have strength enough to stand. I repeating some- 
thing against their cruel proceedings, they commanded me to 
be silent, or else I should be turned out of the room.” 

The third son of Judge Hathorne was “Farmer Joseph,” 
who lived and died peaceably at Salem. Joseph’s fifth son, 
“ Bold Daniel,” became a privateersman in the Revolutionary 
War. Daniel’s third son, Nathaniel, was born in 1775, and 
was the father of our author. 

Hawthorne’s father was a sea-captain, reserved, melancholy* 
and stern, and said to be fond of reading and of children. He 
married Elizabeth Manning, a descendant of Richard Manning, 


2 


BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 


of Dartmouth, England, and at Salem, Massachusetts, on 
July 4, 1804, Nathaniel Hawthorne, the author, was born. 

His father died four years after, and Hawthorne was 
brought up by his grandfather Manning, who paid for his 
education. 

In later life Hawthorne wrote that “one of the peculi- 
arities ” of his boyhood was “a grievous disinclination to go 
to school.” He appears to have been an adventurous boy, 
fond of all outdoor exercises, until an accident in playing ball 
injured his foot. This lameness lasted a long while and re- 
stricted his boyish activity so that he took to reading as a 
pastime. His letters written at this time contain frequent 
allusions to books, and also occasional scraps of poetry. 

In 1821 Hawthorne entered Bowdoin College, where he had 
the good fortune to be a classmate of Longfellow. Another 
classmate was Jonathan Cilley, afterwards a member of Con- 
gress. Franklin Pierce, afterwards President of the United 
States and an intimate friend, was at that time a sophomore. 

These friendships appear to have been about all that he 
gained from his college life. “I was an idle student,” he 
wrote in after years, “ negligent of college rules and the Pro- 
crustean details of academic life, rather choosing to nurse my 
own fancies than to dig Greek roots and be numbered among 
the learned Thebans.” His extreme shyness is shown by the 
fact that he regularly paid fines rather than make declama- 
tions. 

Hawthorne graduated in 1825, and returned to Salem, where 
he settled in the gloomy old family mansion and began to 
write ; at first tentatively, and later with the avowed purpose 
of making literature his profession. In his “ Note Book,’’ 
under date of October 4, 1840, he says: “Here I sit in this 
accustomed chamber where I used to sit in days gone by. . . . 
Here I have written many tales, — many that have been burned 
to ashes, many that doubtless deserve the same fate. . . . and 
here I sat a long, long time, waiting patiently for the world 
to know me, and sometimes wondering why it did not know 
me sooner, or whether it would ever know me at all, — at 
least, till I were in my grave.” 


BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 


3 


He finally published some tales in the magazines, but these 
hardly served the purpose of bringing him fairly before the 
public. “ It was like a man talking to himself in a dark 
place,” he said. 

It was not until March, 1837, that Hawthorne succeeded in 
getting a volume, the first series of “ Twice Told Tales,” pub- 
lished. It brought him an excellent review by Longfellow, 
of which a portion is given in the “ Critical Opinions,” and 
brought him before the world of letters as an accredited 
author ; but financially was not fortunate, as the sales barely 
paid the cost of publication. Before long, however, the young 
author’s necessities were relieved by an appointment to the 
Boston Custom House as weigher and gauger at a salary of 
$1,200. This was hardly a congenial occupation for a man of 
a poetical temperament, but Hawthorne made the best of it, 
and, at the end of his tenure of office (he was removed by a 
change of administration) had saved one thousand dollars 
from his salary. 

Carlyle at this time was speaking to the youth of America 
through Emerson with a voice of thunder, and transcendent- 
alism was abroad in the land. Hawthorne’s friends, the Pea- 
bodys, were Emersonian enthusiasts, and it was probably 
through their influence that he was drawn into the Brook 
Farm community, which seemed to promise an economical 
retreat, where he could find congenial society and the leisure 
to write. He embarked his thousand dollars in this enter- 
prise, and arrived at Brook Farm, April 12, 1841. This com- 
munity was an unconventional society of cultivated men and 
women, sick of politics, and hoping by a communal existence 
to release much time for the development of their individual 
genius. 

Hawthorne remained in the community about a year. But 
before he left he had made the discovery that he had never 
been really there in heart. “The real Me was never a-» asso- 
ciate of the community ; there has been a spectral Appearance 
there, sounding the horn at daybreak, and milking the cows, 
and hoeing potatoes, and raking hay, toiling in the sun, and 
doing me the honor to assume my name. But this spectre 


4 


BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 


was not myself.” But the great eye of Hawthorne was there, 
and every scene was pictured on it. It was the sufficient 
raison d'etre of Brook Farm that it produced that truly Amer- 
ican novel “ The Blithedale Romance.” 

Hawthorne was married in 1842, and went to live at “ The 
Old Manse ” at Concord, Massachusetts. Here he spent four 
happy years, enjoying the society of Emerson, Thoreau, 
Ellery Channing, — who, Emerson said, wrote “ poetry for 
poets ” — and of other cultivated men and women. 

In 1846 Hawthorne was appointed Surveyor of Customs at 
Salem, Massachusetts. He held this position until 1849, but, 
as the office must have been irksome to him, and the Salem 
people did not treat him with any geniality, he was probably 
not sorry when a change of administration ousted him from 
his position. 

Once more he settled down to steady literary work, with 
the result that in 1850 “The Scarlet Letter” appeared, and 
achieved such a marked success that he was enabled to re- 
move to Lenox, Massachusetts. His next book was “The 
House of Seven Gables.” In 1851 he removed to West New- 
ton, Massachusetts, where “The Blithedale Romance” was 
written, and in 1852 he moved again to Concord. 

In 1853 Hawthorne was appointed United States Consul to 
Liverpool, and for six years nothing appeared from his pen. 
His stay in England seems to have been a failure. He met 
none of the great men of letters, then so numerous in Eng- 
land, except the Brownings. He never really liked the Eng- 
lish, and after they had read his “ Our Old Home,” they very 
generally felt the same toward him. It is in this volume that 
he describes Englishwomen as made up of steaks and sirloins, 
a remark which not unnaturally stirred up a strong feeling of 
resentment in England. 

After leaving Liverpool in 1857, Hawthorne and his family 
travelled south, and in January, 1858, they settled in Rome. 
Except for the illness of his eldest daughter, the next two 
years were among the happiest of Hawthorne’s life. He en- 
joyed the society he met in Rome ; W. W. Story the eminent 
sculptor, the historian Motley, William Cullen Bryant, Mrs> 


BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 


5 


Jameson and other cultivated people being his intimates. He 
had come to Rome, however, merely as a pleasant excursion, 
having little or no knowledge of art, and no taste for ruins, so 
that it was some time before he began to take Rome seriously. 
The stay bore fruit when he returned to England on his way 
back to America, in the form of “ The Marble Faun,” probably 
his most popular book. 

In 1860 Hawthorne settled again in Concord with the inten- 
tion of giving himself up to his literary work, but it was not 
to be for long. Presently the war broke out, and he became 
gloomy and unable to work, and in 1864 he died when on a 
trip to New Hampshire with his old friend, Franklin Pierce. 
He was buried at Concord, on May 24, 1864. 

This slight sketch may fitly close by a description of Haw- 
thorne’s personal appearance by his friend and biographer, 
Moncure D. Conway. 

“ He impressed me — the present writer — as of much nobler 
presence than formerly, and certainly he was one of the finest- 
looking of men. I observed him closely at a dinner of the 
Literary Club, in Boston, the great feature of which was the 
presence of Hawthorne, then just from Europe (July, 1860). 
His great athletic frame was softened by its repose, which was 
the more striking beside the vivacity of Agassiz, at whose 
side he sat — himself a magnificent man in appearance. Haw- 
thorne’s massive brow and fine aquiline nose were of such 
commanding strength as to make the mouth and chin seem a 
little weak by contrast. The upper lip was hidden by a thick 
moustache ; the under lip was somewhat too pronounced, per- 
haps. The head was most shapely in front, but at the back 
was singularly flat. This peculiarity appears in a bust of 
Hawthorne now in possession of his friend and banker, Mr. 
Hooker, at Rome. It is by Phillips, and is especially interest- 
ing as representing the author in early life, before the some- 
what severe mouth was modified by a moustache. The eyes 
were at once dark and lucid, very large but never staring, 
incurious, soft and pathetic as those of a deer. When ad- 
dressed, a gracious smile accompanied his always gentle 
reply, and the most engaging expression suffused his warm 


6 


BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH 


brown face. The smile, however, was sweet only while in 
the eyes ; when it extended to the mouth it seemed to give 
him pain. There must have been battles between those soft 
eyes and this mouth. His voice was sweet and low, but sug- 
gested a reserve of quick and powerful intelligence. In con- 
versation, the trait that struck me most was his perfect candor. 
There was no faintest suggestion of secrecy. I have a suspi- 
cion that his shyness was that of one whose heart was without 
bolts or bars, and who felt himself at the mercy of every 
‘ interviewer ’ that might chance to get hold of him.” 


The text has been slightly simplified to adapt it for fourth-grade 
supplementary reading. 


I 











“ He hit him fair upon the neck, and made his bull head roll six yards from 
his human body, which fell down flat upon the ground.”— Page 71, 


THE DRAGON’S TEETH 


1. Cadmus (Kad'-mus), Phcexix (Fe'-nix), and Cilix 
(Se'-llx), the three sons of King Agenor (A'-ja-nor), and 
their little sister Europa (U-ro'-pa) (who was a very beau- 
tiful child), were at play together, near the sea-shore, in 
their father’s kingdom of Phoenicia 1 (Fe-msh'-a). They 
had rambled to some distance from the palace where their 
parents dwelt, and were now in a verdant meadow, on 
one side of which lay the sea, all sparkling and dimpling 
in the sunshine, and murmuring gently against the beach. 
The three boys were very happy, gathering flowers, and 
twining them into garlands, with which they adorned the 
little Europa. Seated on the grass, the child was almost 
hidden under an abundance of buds and blossoms, whence 
her rosy face peeped merrily out, and, as Cadmus said, 
was the prettiest of all the flowers. 

2. Just then, there came a splendid butterfly fluttering 
along the meadow ; and Cadmus, Phoenix, and Cilix set 
off in pursuit of it, crying out that it was a flower with 


1 Phoenicia. A country of Asia on the Syrian coast. The Phoenicians were 
the earliest merchants of the world. When no other country had vessels on 
the sea, the Phoenicians were exploring the entire Mediterranean Sea, and are 
said to have gone even as far as Great Britain in search of metals. 


10 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


wings. Europa, who was a little wearied with playing all 
day long, did not chase the butterfly with her brothers, 
but sat still where they had left her, and closed her eyes. 
For a while she listened to the pleasant murmur of the sea, 
which was like a voice saying “Hush ! ” and bidding her 
go to sleep. But the pretty child, if she slept at all, could 
not have slept more than a moment, when she heard 
something trample on the’ grass not far from her, and 
peeping out from the heap of flowers, beheld a snow-white 
bull. 

3. And whence could this bull have come ? Europa 
and her brothers had been a long time playing in the 
meadow, and had seen no cattle, nor other living thing, 
either there or on the neighboring hills. 

“ Brother Cadmus ! ” cried Europa, starting up out of 
the midst of the roses and lilies. “ Phoenix ! Cilix ! 
where are you all ? Help ! help ! Come and drive away 
this bull ! ” 

But her brothers were too far off to hear — especially as 
the fright took away Europa’s voice, and hindered her 
from calling very loudly. So there she stood, with her 
pretty mouth wide open, as pale as the white lilies that 
were twisted among the other flowers in her garlands. 

4. Nevertheless, it was the suddenness with which she 
had perceived the bull, rather than anything frightful in 
his appearance, that caused Europa so much alarm. On 
looking at him more attentively, she began to see that he 
was a beautiful animal, and even fancied a kindly expres- 
sion in his face. As for his breath — the breath of cattle is 
always sweet — it was as fragrant as if he had been grazing 
on rosebuds, or the most delicate of clover blossoms. 
Never before did a bull have such bright and tender eyes. 


THE DRAGON’S TEETH 


11 


and such smooth horns of ivory, as this one. And the 
bull ran little races, and played sportively around the 
child ; so that she quite forgot how big and strong he was, 
and, from the gentleness and playfulness of his actions, 
soon came to consider him as innocent a creature as a pet 
lamb. 

5. Thus, frightened as she at first was, you might by- 
and-by have seen Europa stroking the bull’s forehead with 
her small white hand, and taking the garlands from her 
own head to hang them on his neck and ivory horns. 
Then she pulled up some blades of grass, and he ate them 
out of her hand, not as if he were hungry, but because he 
wanted to be friends with the child, and took pleasure in 
eating what she had touched. Was there ever such a 
gentle, sweet, pretty, and amiable creature as this bull, 
and ever such a nice playmate for a little girl ? 

6. When the animal saw that Europa was no longer 
afraid of him, he grew overjoyed, and could hardly contain 
himself for delight. He frisked about the meadow, now 
here, now there, making sprightly leaps, with as little 
effort as a bird expends in hopping from twig to twig. 
Indeed his motion was as light as if he were flying through 
the air, and his hoofs seemed hardly to leave their print 
in the grassy soil over which he trod. With his spotless 
hue, he resembled a snowdrift, wafted along by the wind. 
Once he galloped so far away that Europa feared lest she 
might never see him again ; so, straining her childish 
voice, she called him back. 

7. “ Come back, pretty creature ! ” she cried. “ Here 
is a nice clover blossom for you.” 

And then it was delightful to witness the gratitude of 
this amiable bull, and how he was so full of joy and thank- 


12 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


fulness that he leaped higher than ever. He came run- 
ning, and bowed his head before Europa, as if he knew 
her to be a king’s daughter. And not only did the hull 
bend his neck ; he absolutely knelt down at her feet, and 
made such intelligent nods, and other inviting gestures, 
that Europa understood what he meant just as well as if 
he had put it in so many words. 

“ Come, dear child,” was what he wanted to say, 
“ let me give you a ride on my back.” 

8. At the first thought of such a thing, Europa drew back. 
But then she considered in her wise little head that there 
could be no possible harm in taking just one gallop on the 
back of this docile and friendly animal, who would cer- 
tainly set her down the very instant she desired it. And 
how it would surprise her brothers to see her riding across 
the green meadow ! And what merry times they might 
have, either taking turns for a gallop, or clambering on 
the gentle creature, all four children together, and career- 
ing round the field with shouts of laughter that would be 
heard as far off as King Agenor’s palace ! 

“I think I will do it,” said the child to herself. 

9. And, indeed, why not ? She cast a glance around, 
and caught a glimpse of Cadmus, Phoenix, and Cilix, who 
were still in pursuit of the butterfly, almost at the other 
end of the meadow. It would be the quickest way of re- 
joining them, to get upon the white bull’s back. She 
came a step nearer to him, therefore ; and he showed so 
much joy at this, that the child could not find it in her 
heart to hesitate any longer. Making one bound (for this 
little princess was as active as a squirrel), there sat Europa 
on the beautiful bull, holding an ivory horn in each hand, 
lest she should fall off. 


THE DRAGON’S TEETH 


13 


“ Softly, pretty bull — softly ! ” she said, rather 
frightened at what she had done. “ Do not gallop too 
fast.” 

10. Having got the child on his back, the animal gave a 
leap into the air, and came down so like a feather that 
Europa did not know when his hoofs touched the ground. 
He then began a race to that part of the flowery plain 
where her three brothers were, and where they had just 
caught their splendid butterfly. Europa screamed with 
delight ; and Phoenix, Cilix, and Cadmus stood gaping at 
the spectacle of their sister mounted on a white bull, not 
knowing whether to be frightened, or to wish the same 
good luck for themselves. The gentle and innocent crea- 
ture pranced round among the children as playfully as 
a kitten. Europa all the while looked down upon her 
brothers nodding and laughing, but yet with a sort of 
stateliness in her rosy little face. As the bull wheeled 
about to take another gallop across the meadow, the child 
waved her hand, and said, “Good-bye,” playfully pre- 
tending that she was now bound on a distant journey, 
and might not see her brothers again for nobody could 
tell how long. 

“ Good-bye ! ” shouted Cadmus, Phoenix, and Cilix, all 
in one breath. 

11. But together with her enjoyment of the sport, there 
was still a little remnant of fear in the child’s heart ; so 
that her last look at the three boys was a troubled one, and 
made them feel as if their dear sister were really leaving 
them forever. And what do you think the snowy bull did 
next ? Why, he set off as swift as the wind straight down 
to the sea-shore, scampered across the sand, took an airy 
leap, and plunged right in among the foaming billows. 


14 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


The white spray rose in a shower over him and little 
Europa, and fell spattering down upon the water. 

12. Then what a scream of terror did the poor child send 
forth ! The three brothers screamed manfully likewise, 
and ran to the shore as fast as their legs would carry them, 
with Cadmus at their head. But it was too late. When 
they reached the margin of the sand, the treacherous ani- 
mal was already far away in the wide blue sea, with only 
his snowy head and tail emerging, and poor little Europa 
between them, stretching out one hand towards her dear 
brothers, while she grasped the bull’s ivory horn with the 
other. And there stood Cadmus, Phoenix, and Cilix, gaz- 
ing at this sad spectacle, through their tears, until they 
could no longer distinguish the bull’s snowy head from 
the white-capped billows that seemed to boil up out of 
the sea’s depths around him. Nothing more was ever 
seen of the white bull — nothing more of the beautiful 
child. 

13. This was a sad and mournful story for the three boys 
to carry home to their parents. King Agenor, their father, 
was the ruler of the whole country ; but he loved his little 
daughter Europa better than his kingdom, or than all his 
other children, or than anything else in the world. There- 
fore, when Cadmus and his two brothers came crying 
home, and told him how that a white bull had carried off 
their sister, and swam with her over the sea, the king was 
quite beside himself with grief and rage. Although it 
was now twilight, and fast growing dark, he bade them 
set out instantly in search of her. 

14. “ Never shall you see my face again,” he cried, 
“ unless you bring me back my little Europa, to gladden 
me with her smiles and her pretty ways ! Begone, and 


THE DRAGON’S TEETH * 


15 


enter my presence no more, till you come leading her by 
the hand ! ” 

As King Agenor said this, his eyes flashed fire (for he 
was a very passionate king), and he looked so terribly an- 
gry that the poor boys did not even venture to ask for their 
suppers, but slunk away out of the palace, and only paused 
on the steps a moment to consult whither they should go 
first. While they were standing there, all in dismay, their 
mother. Queen Telephassa (Te'-le-fas'-sa) (who happened 
not to be by when they told the story to the king), came 
hurrying after them, and said that she too would go in 
quest of her daughter. 

15. “ Oh no, mother ! ” cried the boys. “ The night is 
dark, and there is no knowing what troubles and perils we 
may meet with.” 

“ Alas ! my dear children,” answered poor Queen Tele- 
phassa, weeping bitterly, “ that is only another reason 
why I should go with you. If I should lose you too, as 
well as my little Europa, what would become of me ? ” 

“ And let me go likewise ! ” said their playfellow Thasus, 
(Tha'-sus) who came running to join them. 

16. Thasus was the son of a seafaring man in the neigh- 
borhood : he had been brought up with the young princes, 
and was their intimate friend, and loved Europa very 
much ; so they consented that he should accompany them. 
The whole party, therefore, set forth together. Cadmus, 
Phoenix, Cilix, and Thasus clustered round Queen Tele- 
phassa, grasping her skirts, and begging her to lean upon 
their shoulders whenever she felt weary. In this manner 
they went down the palace-steps, and began a journey 
which turned out to be a great deal longer than they 
dreamed of. The last that they saw of King Agenor was 


16 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


when he came to the door, with a servant holding a torch 
beside him, and called after them into the gathering dark- 
ness — 

“ Remember ! Never ascend these steps again without 
the child ! ” 

“ Never sobbed Queen Telephassa ; and the three 
brothers and Thasus answered, “ Never ! Never ! Never ! 
Never ! ” 

17. And they kept their word. Year after year, King 
Agenor sat in the solitude of his beautiful palace, listen- 
ing in vain for their returning footsteps, hoping to hear 
the familiar voice of the queen, and the cheerful talk of 
his sons and their playfellow Thasus, entering the door 
together, and the sweet childish accents of little Europa 
in the midst of them. But so long a time went by, that 
at last, if they had really come, the king would not have 
known that this was the voice of Telephassa, and these 
the younger voices that used to make such joyful echoes 
when the children were playing about the palace. We 
must now leave King Agenor to sit on his throne, and 
must go along with Queen Telephassa and her four youth- 
ful companions. 

18. They went on and on, and traveled a long way, and 
passed over mountains and rivers, and sailed over seas. 
Here and there, and everywhere, they made continual in- 
quiry if any person could tell them what had become of 
Europa. The rustic people, of whom they asked this 
question, paused a little while from their labors in the 
field, and looked very much surprised. They thought it 
strange to behold a woman in the garb of a queen (for 
Telephassa, in her haste, had forgotten to take off her 
crown and her royal robes) roaming about the country, 


THE DRAGON’S TEETH 


IT 


with four lads around her, on such an errand as this 
seemed to be. But nobody could give them any tidings 
of Europa ; nobody had seen a little girl dressed like a 
princess, and mounted on a snow-white bull, which gal- 
loped as swiftly as the wind. 

19. I cannot tell you how long Queen Telephassa and 
Cadmus, Phoenix, and Cilix, her three sons, and Thasus, 
their playfellow, went wandering along the highways and 
by-paths, or through the pathless wildernesses of the 
earth, in this manner. But certain it is, that before they 
reached any place of rest, their splendid garments were 
quite worn out. 

20. As fast as their princely robes got torn and tattered, 
they exchanged them for such mean attire as ordinary 
people wore. By-and-by they came to have a wild and 
homeless aspect, so that you would much sooner have 
taken them for a gipsy family than a queen and three 
princes and a young man, who had once a palace for their 
home, and a train of servants to do their bidding. The 
four boys grew up to be tall young men, with sunburnt 
faces. Each of them girded on a sword, to defend him- 
self against the perils of the way. When the husband- 
men, at whose farmhouses they sought hospitality, needed 
their assistance in the harvest-field, they gave it willingly ; 
and Queen Telephassa (who had done no work in her 
palace, save to braid silk threads with golden ones) came 
behind them to bind the sheaves. If payment was offered, 
they shook their heads, and only asked for tidings of 
Europa. “ There are bulls enough in my pasture/’ the 
old farmers would reply ; “ but I never heard of one 
like this you tell me of. A snow-white bull with a little 
princess on his back ! Ho ! ho ! I ask your pardon, 

2 


18 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


good folks ; but there never was such a sight seen here- 
abouts. ” 

21 . At last Phoenix grew weary of rambling hither and 
thither to no purpose. So one day, when they happened 
to be passing through a pleasant and solitary tract of 
country, he sat himself down on a heap of moss. 

“ I can go no farther,” said Phoenix. “ It is a mere 
foolish waste of life to spend it as we do, in always wander- 
ing uji and down, and never coming to any home at night- 
fall. Our sister is lost, and never will be found. She 
probably perished in the sea ; or to whatever shore the 
white bull may have carried her, it is now so many years 
ago, that there would be neither love nor acquaintance 
between us should we meet again. My father has forbid- 
den us to return to his palace ; so I shall build me a hut 
of branches, and dwell here.” 

22 . “ Well, son Phoenix,” said Telephassa, sorrowfully, 
“you have grown to be a man, and must do as you judge 
best. But for my part, I will still go in quest of my poor 
child.” 

“ And we three will go along with you ! ” cried Cadmus 
and Cilix, and their faithful friend Thasus. 

23 . But before setting out they all helped Phoenix to 
build a house. When completed, it was a sweet rural 
bower, roofed overhead with an arch of living boughs. 
Inside, there were two pleasant rooms, one of which had a 
soft heap of moss for a bed, while the other was furnished 
with a rustic seat or two, curiously fashioned out of the 
crooked roots of trees. So comfortable and home-like did 
it seem, that Telephassa and her three companions could 
not help sighing, to think that they must still roam about 
the world, instead of spending the remainder of their lives 


THE DRAGON’S TEETH 


19 


in some such cheerful abode as they had there built for 
Phoenix. But when they bade him farewell, Phoenix shed 
tears, and probably regretted that he was no longer to 
keep them company. 

24. However, he had fixed upon an admirable place to 
dwell in. And, by-and-by, there came other people who 
chanced to have no homes ; and seeing how pleasant a spot 
it was, they built themselves huts in the neighborhood of 
Phoenix’s abode. Thus, before many years went by, a city 
had grown up there, in the center of which was seen a 
stately palace of marble, wherein dwelt Phoenix, clothed in 
a purple robe, and wearing a golden crown upon his head. 
For the inhabitants of the new city, finding that he had 
royal blood in his veins, had chosen him to be their king. 
The very first decree of state which King Phoenix issued 
was, that, if a maiden happened to arrive in the^kingdom, 
mounted on a snow-white bull, and calling herself Europa, 
his subjects should treat her with the greatest kindness 
and respect, and immediately bring her to the palace. 

25. Often and often, at the close of a weary day’s jour- 
ney, did Telephassa and Cadmus, Cilix and Thasus, remem- 
ber the pleasant spot in which they left Phoenix. It was a 
sorrowful prospect for these wanderers, that on the mor- 
row they must again set forth, and that, after many night- 
falls, they would perhaps be no nearer the close of their 
toilsome pilgrimage than now. These thoughts made 
them all melancholy at times, but appeared to torment 
Cilix more than the rest of the party. At length, one 
morning when they were taking their staffs in hand to 
set out, he thus addressed them : — 

26. “ My dear mother, and you-good brother Cadmus, and 
my friend Thasus, methinks we are like people in a dream. 


20 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


There is no substance in the life which we are leading. It 
is such a dreary length of time since the white bull carried 
off my sister Europa, that I have quite forgotten how she 
looked, and the tones of her voice, and indeed almost doubt 
whether such a little girl ever lived in the world. And 
whether she once lived or no, I am sure that she no longer 
survives, and that it is the merest folly to waste our own 
lives and happiness in seeking her. Were we to find her, 
she would now be a woman, and would look upon us all 
as strangers. So I have resolved to take up my abode 
here ; and I entreat you, mother, brother, and friend, to 
follow my example.” 

27. “Not I, for one,” said Telephassa ; although the 
poor queen, firmly as she spoke, was so travel-worn that she 
could hardly put her foot to the ground. 44 Not I, for one ! 
In the dejfths of my heart, little Europa is still the rosy 
child who ran to gather flowers so many years ago. She 
has not grown to womanhood, nor forgotten me. At 
noon, at night, journeying onward, sitting down to rest, 
her childish voice is always in my ears, calling 4 Mother ! 
mother ! * Stop here who may, there is no repose for me.” 

44 Nor for me,” said Cadmus, 44 while my dear mother 
pleases to go onward.” 

And the faithful Thasus, too, was resolved to bear them 
company. They remained with Cilix a few days, how- 
ever, and helped him to build a rustic bower, resembling 
the one which they had formerly built for Phoenix. 

28. When they were bidding him farewell, Cilix burst 
into tears, and told his mother that it seemed just as mel- 
ancholy a dream to stay there, in solitude, as to go onward. 
If she really believed that they would ever find Europa, 
he was willing to continue the search with them even 


THE DRAGON’S TEETH. 


21 


now. But Telephassa bade him remain there, and be 
happy, if his own heart would let him. So the pilgrims 
took their leave of him, and departed, and were hardly 
out of sight before some other wandering people came 
along that way, and saw Cilix’s habitation, and were 
greatly delighted with the appearance of the place. There 
being plenty of unoccupied ground in the neighborhood, 
these strangers built huts for themselves, and were soon 
joined by a multitude of new settlers, who quickly formed 
a city. In the middle of it was seen a magnificent palace 
of colored marble, on the balcony of which, every noon- 
tide, appeared Cilix, in a long purple robe, and with a 
jeweled crown upon his head ; for the inhabitants, when 
they found out that he was a king’s son, had considered 
him the fittest of all men to be a king himself. 

29. One of the first acts of King Cilix’s government was 
to send out an expedition, consisting of a grave ambassador 
and an escort of bold and hardy young men, with orders 
to visit the principal kingdoms of the earth, and inquire 
whether a young maiden had passed through those regions, 
galloping swiftly on a white bull. It is therefore plain 
that Cilix secretly blamed himself for giving up the 
search for Europa as long as he was able to continue the 
search. 

30. As for Telephassa, and Cadmus, and the good Tha- 
sus, they still kept up that weary pilgrimage. The two 
young men did their best for the poor queen, helping her 
over the rough places, often carrying her across rivulets in 
their faithful arms, and seeking to shelter her at nightfall, 
even when they themselves lay upon the ground. Sad, sad 
it was to hear them asking of every passer-by if he had seen 
Europa, so long after the white bull had carried her away. 


22 


TANGLE WOOD TALES. 


But though the gray years thrust themselves between, and 
made the child’s figure dim in their remembrance, neither 
of these true-hearted three ever dreamed of giving up the 
search. 

31. One morning, however, poor Thasus found that he 
had sprained his ankle, and could not possibly go farther. 

“ After a few days, to be sure,” said he mournfully, “ I 
might make shift to hobble along with a stick. But that 
would only delay you, and perhaps hinder you from find- 
ing dear little Europa, after all your pains and trouble. 
Do you go forward, therefore, my beloved companions, 
and leave me to follow as I may.” 

32. “ Thou hast been a true friend, dear Thasus,” said 
Queen Telephassa, kissing his forehead. “ Being neither 
my son, nor the brother of our lost Europa, thou hast 
shown thyself truer to me and her than Phoenix and Cilix 
did, whom we have left behind us. Without thy loving 
help, and that of my son Cadmus, my limbs could not 
have borne me half so far as this. Now, take thy rest 
and be at peace. For — and it is the first time I have 
owned it to myself — I begin to doubt whether we shall 
ever find my beloved daughter in this world.” 

33. Saying this, the poor quejen shed tears, because it 
was a grievous trial to the mother’s heart to confess that 
her hopes were growing faint. From that day forward 
Cadmus noticed that she never traveled with the same 
brightness of spirit that had heretofore supported her. 
Her weight was heavier upon his arm. 

34. Before setting out, Cadmus helped Thasus to build 
a bower ; while Telephassa, being too infirm to give any 
great assistance, advised them how to fit it up and furnish 
it, so that it might be as comfortable as a hut of branches 


THE DKAGON’s TEETH 


could. Thasus, however, did not spend all his days in 
this green bower. For it happened to him, as to Phoenix 
and Cilix, that other homeless people visited the spot, and 
liked it, and built themselves houses in the neighborhood. 
So here, in the course of a few years, was another thriving 
city, with a red sandstone palace in the center of it, where 
Thasus sat upon a throne, dealing out justice to the people, 
with a purple robe over his shoulders, a scepter in his 
hand, and a crown upon his head. 1 The inhabitants had 
made him king, not for the sake of any royal blood (for 
none was in his veins), but because Thasus was an upright, 
true-hearted, and courageous man, and therefore fit to 
rule. 

35. But, when the affairs of his kingdom were all settled, 
King Thasus laid aside his purple robe and crown and 
scepter, and bade his worthiest subject deal out justice to 
the people in his stead. Then, grasping the pilgrim’s 
staff that had supported him so long, he set forth again, 
hoping still to discover some hoof-mark of the snow-white 
bull, some trace of the vanished child. He returned after 
a lengthened absence, and sat down wearily upon his 
throne. To his latest hour, nevertheless, King Thasus 
showed his true-hearted remembrance of Europa, by 
ordering that a fire should always be kept burning in his 
palace, and a bath steaming hot, and food ready to be 
served up, and a bed with snow-white sheets, in case the 
maiden should arrive and require immediate refreshment. 


1 According to some myths, Phoenicia was the kingdom of Phoenix,— Cilicia, 
a country on the south coast of Asia Minor, the kingdom of Cilix, — and the 
Island of Thasos (Tha/-sos) in the north of the Aegean Sea, the kingdom of 
Thasus. This island was very early taken possession of by the Phoenicians on 
account of its gold mines. 


24 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


And though Europa never came, the good Thasus had the 
blessings of many a poor traveler, who profited by the food 
and lodging which were meant for the little playmate of 
the king’s boyhood. 

36. Telephassa and Cadmus were now pursuing their 
weary way, with no companion but each other. The queen 
leaned heavily upon her son’s arm, and could walk only 
a few miles a-day. But, for all her weakness and weari- 
ness, she would not be persuaded to give up the search. 
It was enough to bring tears into the eyes of bearded men 
to hear the melancholy tone with which she inquired of 
every stranger whether he could tell her any news of the 
lost child. 

“ Have you seen a little girl — no, no, I mean a young 
maiden of full growth — passing by this way, mounted on 
a snow-white bull, which gallops as swiftly as the wind ? ” 

37. “ We have seen no such wondrous sight,” the people 
would reply ; and very often, taking Cadmus aside, they 
whispered to him, “ Is this stately and sad-looking woman 
your mother ? Surely she is not in her right mind ; and 
you ought to take her home and make her comfortable, 
and do your best to get this dream out of her fancy.” 

“ It is no dream,” said Cadmus. “ Everything else is 
a dream, save that.” 

38. But, one day, Telephassa seemed feebler than usual, 
and leaned almost her whole weight on the arm of Cad- 
mus, and walked more slowly than ever before. At last 
they reached a solitary spot, where she told her son that 
she must needs lie down and take a good long rest. 

“A good long rest,” she repeated, looking Cadmus 
tenderly in the face. “ A good long rest, thou dearest 
one ! ” 


THE DRAGON S TEETH 


25 


“ As long as you please,dear mother,” answered Cadmus. 

Telephassa bade him sit down on the turf beside her, 
and she then took his hand. 

“ My son,” said she, fixing her dim eyes most lovingly 
upon him, “ this rest that I speak of will be very long 
indeed ! You must not wait till it is finished. Dear 
Cadmus, you do not comprehend me. You must make 
a grave here, and lay your mother’s weary frame into it. 
My pilgrimage is over.” 

39. Cadmus burst into tears, and, for a long time, refused 
to believe that his dear mother was now to be taken from 
him. But Telephassa reasoned with him, and kissed him, 
and at length made him discern that it was better for her 
spirit to pass away out of the toil, the weariness, the grief, 
and disappointment which had burdened her on earth, 
ever since the child was lost. He therefore repressed his 
sorrow, and listened to her last words. 

40. “ Dearest Cadmus,” said she, “thou hast been the 
truest son that ever mother had, and faithful to the very 
last. Who else would have borne with my infirmities as 
thou hast ? It is owing to thy care, thou tenderest child, 
that my grave was not dug long years ago, in some valley 
or on some hillside, that lies far, far behind us. It is 
enough. Thou shalt wander no more on this hopeless 
search. But when thou hast laid thy mother in the earth, 
then go, my son, to Delphi 1 (Del'-fe), and inquire of the 
oracle what thou shalt do next.” 

“0 mother, mother!” cried Cadmus, “couldst thou 
have but seen my sister before this hour ! ” 

1 Delphi. In Phocis (fo'-sis) on the mainland of Greece. Delphi was regarded 
by the Greeks as the center of the earth. It was the seat of the most famous 
oracle of Apollo. 


26 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


“It matters little now,” answered Telephassa, and 
there was a smile upon her face. “ I go now to the better 
world, and, sooner or later, shall find my daughter there.” 

41. I will not sadden you with telling how Telephassa 
died and was buried, but will only say, that her dying smile 
grew brighter, instead of vanishing from her dead face ; 
so that Cadmus felt convinced that, at her very first step 
into the better world, she had caught Europa in her arms. 
He planted some flowers on his mother’s grave and left 
them to grow there, and make the place beautiful, when 
he should be far away. 

42. After performing this last sorrowful duty, he set 
forth alone, and took the road towards the famous oracle 
of Delphi, as Telephassa had advised him. On his way 
thither, he still inquired of most people whom he met 
whether they had seen Europa ; for, to say the truth, 
Cadmus had grown so accustomed to ask the question, 
that it came to his lips as readily as a remark about the 
weather. He received various answers. Some told him 
one thing and some another. Among the rest, a mariner 
affirmed, that, many years before, in a distant country, 
he had heard a rumor about a white bull, which came 
swimming across the sea with a child on his back, dressed 
up in flowers that were blighted with the sea-water. He 
did not know what had become of the child or the bull ; 
and Cadmus suspected, indeed, by a look in the mariner’s 
eye, that he was only joking, and had never really heard 
anything about the matter. 

43. Poor Cadmus found it more wearisome to travel alone 
than to bear all his dear mother’s weight while she had 
kept him company. His heart, you will understand, was 
now so heavy that it seemed impossible sometimes to carry 


THE DRAGON*S TEETH 


27 


it any farther. But his limbs were strong and active, and 
well accustomed to exercise. He walked swiftly along, 
thinking of King Agenor and Queen Telephassa, and his 
brothers, and the friendly Thasus, all of whom he had left 
behind him at one point of his pilgrimage or another, and 
never expected to see them any more. Full of these re- 
membrances, he came within sight of a lofty mountain, 
which the people thereabouts told him was called Parnas- 
sus (Par-nas'-sus). 1 On the slope of Mount Parnassus was 
the famous Delphi, whither Cadmus was going. 

44. This Delphi was supposed to be the very midmost 
spot of the whole world. The place of the oracle was a 
certain cavity in the mountain-side, over which, when Cad- 
mus came thither, he found a rude bower of branches. It 
reminded him of those which he had helped to build for 
Phoenix and Cilix, and afterwards for Thasus. In later 
times, when multitudes of people came from great dis- 
tances, to put questions to the oracle, a spacious temple of 
marble was erected over the spot. But in the days of 
Cadmus there was only this rustic bower, with its abun- 
dance of green foliage and a tuft of shrubbery, that ran 
wild over the mysterious hole in the hillside. 

45. When Cadmus had thrust a passage through the 
tangled boughs, and made his way into the bower, he did 
not at first discern the half-hidden cavity. But soon he 
felt a cold stream of air rushing out of it with so much 
force that it shook the ringlets of his hair. Pulling away 
the shrubbery which clustered over the hole, he bent for- 
ward, and spoke in a distinct but reverential tone, as if ad- 
dressing some unseen personage inside of the mountain. 

1 Parnassus. A mountain celebrated as the home of the Muses, the divini- 
ties presiding over the arts and sciences, especially literature and music. 


28 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


“Sacred oracle of Delphi,” said he, “whither shall I 
go next in quest of my dear sister Europa ? ” 

46. There was at first a deep silence, and then a rushing 
sound, or a noise like a long sigh, proceeding out of the 
interior of the earth. This cavity was looked upon as a 
sort of fountain of truth, which sometimes gushed out in 
audible words. By-and-by the rushing noise began to 
sound like articulate language. It repeated, over and 
over again, the following sentence, which, after all, was 
so like the vague whistle of a blast of air, that Cadmus 
really did not quite know whether it meant anything or 
not : — 

“ Seek her no more ! Seek her no more ! Seek her no 
more ! ” 

“ AVhat, then, shall I do ? ” asked Cadmus. 

47. For, ever since he was a child, it had been the great 
object of his life to find his sister. From the very hour 
that he left following the butterfly in the meadow near his 
father’s palace, he had done his best to follow Europa 
over land and sea. And now, if he must give up the 
search, he seemed to have no more to do in this world. 

But again the sighing gust of air grew into something 
like a hoarse voice. 

“ Follow the cow ! ” it said. “ Follow the cow ! Fol- 
low the cow ! ” 

48. And when these words had been repeated until 
Cadmus was tired of hearing them (especially as he could 
not imagine what cow it was, or why he was to follow 
her), the gusty hole gave vent to another sentence. 

“ Where the stray cow lies down, there is your home.” 

These words were pronounced but a single time, and 
died away into a whisper before Cadmus was fully satisfied 


THE DRAGON’S TEETH 


29 


that he had caught the meaning. He put other questions, 
but received no answer ; only the gust of wind sighed con- 
tinually out of the cavity, and blew the withered leaves 
rustling along the ground before it. 

49. “ Did there really come any words out of the hole ? ” 
thought Cadmus ; “ or have I been dreaming all this 
while ? ” 

He turned away from the oracle, and thought himself 
no wiser than when he came thither. Caring little what 
might happen to him, he took the first path that offered 
itself, and went along at a sluggish pace ; for, having no 
object in view, nor any reason to go one way more than 
another, it would certainly have been foolish to make 
haste. Whenever he met anybody, the old question was 
at his tongue’s end — 

50. “ Have you seen a beautiful maiden, dressed like a 
king’s daughter, and mounted on a snow-white bull, that 
gallops as swiftly as the wind ? ” 

But, remembering what the oracle had said, he only 
half uttered the words, and then mumbled the rest in- 
distinctly ; and from his confusion, people must have 
imagined that this handsome young man had lost his 
wits. 

51. I know not how far Cadmus had gone, nor could he 
himself have told you, when, at no great distance before 
him, he beheld a brindled cow. She was lying down by 
the wayside, and quietly chewing the cud ; nor did she 
take any notice of the young man until he had approached 
pretty nigh. Then, getting leisurely upon her feet, and 
giving her head a gentle toss, she began to move slowly 
along, often pausing just long enough to crop a mouthful 
of grass. Cadmus loitered behind, whistling idly to him- 


30 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


self, and scarcely noticing the cow ; until the thought 
occurred to him whether this could possibly be the animal 
which, according to the oracle’s response, was to serve 
him for a guide. But he smiled at himself for fancying 
such a thing. He could not seriously think that this was 
the cow, because she went along so quietly, behaving just 
like any other cow. Evidently she neither knew nor cared 
about Cadmus, and was only thinking how to get her living 
along the wayside, where the herbage was green and 
fresh. Perhaps she was going home to be milked. 

52. “ Cow — cow — cow ! ” cried Cadmus. “ Hey, 
Brindle, hey ! Stop, my good cow ! ” 

He wanted to come up with the cow, so as to examine 
her, and see if she would appear to know him, or whether 
there were anything to mark her out from a thousand 
other cows, whose only business is to fill the milk-pail. 
But still the brindled cow trudged on, whisking her tail 
to keep the flies away, and taking as little notice of Cad- 
mus as she well could. If he walked slowly, so did the 
cow, and seized the opportunity to graze. If he quick- 
ened his pace, the cow went just so much the faster ; and 
once, when Cadmus tried to catch her by running, she set 
off at a quick gallop. 

53. When Cadmus saw that it was impossible to come 
up with her, he walked on moderately as before. The cow, 
too, went leisurely on, without looking behind. Wherever 
the grass was greenest, there she cropped a mouthful or 
two. When a brook glistened brightly across the path, 
there the cow drank, and breathed a comfortable sigh, 
and drank again, and trudged onward at the pace that best 
suited herself and Cadmus. 

“ I do believe,” thought Cadmus, “that this may be 


THE DRAGON S TEETH 


31 


the cow that was foretold to me. If it he the one, I sup- 
pose she will lie down somewhere hereabouts.” 

54. Whenever they reached a particularly pleasant spot 
on a breezy hillside, or in a sheltered vale, or flowery 
meadow on the shore of a calm lake, or along the bank of 
a clear stream, Cadmus looked eagerly around to see if the 
situation would suit him for a home. But still, whether 
he liked the place or no, the brindled cow never offered to 
lie down. On she went at the quiet pace of a cow going 
homeward to the barnyard ; and every moment Cadmus 
expected to see a milkmaid approaching with a pail, or a 
herdsman running to stop the stray animal, and turn her 
back towards the pasture. But no milkmaid came ; no 
herdsman drove her back ; and Cadmus followed the stray 
cow till he was almost ready to drop down with fatigue. 

55. “ 0 brindled cow,” cried he, in a tone of despair, 
“ do you never mean to stop ? ” 

He had now grown too intent on following her to think 
of lagging behind, however long the way, and whatever 
might be his fatigue. Indeed it seemed as if there were 
something about the animal that bewitched people. Sev- 
eral persons who happened to see the brindled cow, and 
Cadmus following behind, began to trudge after her pre- 
cisely as he did. Cadmus was glad of somebody to con- 
verse with, and therefore talked very freely to these good 
people. He told them all his adventures, and how he had 
left King Agenor in his palace, and Phoenix at one place, 
and Cilix at another, and Thasus at a third, and his dear 
mother, Queen Telephassa, under a flowery sod, so that 
now he was quite alone, both friendless and homeless. 
He mentioned, likewise, that the oracle had bidden him 
to be guided by a cow, and inquired of the strangers 


32 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


whether they supposed that this brindled animal could 
be the one. 

56. “ Why, ’tis a very wonderful affair/’ answered one 
of his new companions. “ I am pretty well acquainted with 
the ways of cattle, and I never knew a cow of her own ac- 
cord go so far without stopping. If my legs will let me, 
I’ll never leave following the beast till she lies down.” 

“ Nor I ! ” said a second. 

“Nor I!” cried a third. “If she goes a hundred 
miles farther, I’m determined to see the end of it.” 

57. They kept trudging stoutly forward, and talking as 
they went. The strangers grew very fond of Cadmus, 
and resolved never to leave him, but to help him to build 
a city wherever the cow might lie down. In the center of 
it there should be a noble palace, in which Cadmus might 
dwell, and be their king, with a throne, a crown and scep- 
ter, a purple robe, and everything else that a king ought 
to have ; for in him there was the royal blood and the 
royal heart, and the head that knew how to rule. 

While they were talking of these schemes, and beguil- 
ing the tediousness of the way with laying out the plan of 
the new city, one of the company happened to look at the 
cow. 

58. “ Joy ! joy ! ” cried he, dapping his hands. “ The 
cow is going to lie down.” 

They all looked ; and sure enough the cow had stopped, 
and was staring leisurely about her as other cows do when 
on the point of lying down. And slowly, slowly did she 
recline herself on the soft grass, first bending her fore 
legs, and then crouching her hind ones. When Cadmus 
and his companions came up with her, there was the 
brindled cow taking her ease, chewing her cud, and look- 


THE DRAGON S TEETH 


33 


ing them quietly in the face, as if this was just the spot 
she had been seeking for, and as if it were all a matter of 
course. 

“ This, then,” said Cadmus, gazing around him, — “ this 
is to be my home.” 

59. It was a fertile and lovely plain, with great trees fling- 
ing their sun-speckled shadows over it, and hills fencing it 
in from the rough weather. At no great distance they be- 
held a river gleaming in the sunshine. A home feeling stole 
into the heart of poor Cadmus. He was very glad to know 
that here he might awake in the morning without having 
to put on his dusty sandals to travel farther and farther. 
The days and the years would pass over him and find him 
still in this pleasant spot. If he could have had his 
brothers with him, and his friend Thasus, and could have 
seen his dear mother under a roof of his own, he might 
here have been happy, after all their disappointments. 
Some day or other, too, his sister Europa might have come 
quietly to the door of his home, and smiled round upon 
the familiar faces. But, indeed, since there was no hope 
of regaining the friends of his boyhood, or ever seeing his 
dear sister again, Cadmus resolved to make himself happy 
with these new companions who had grown so fond of him 
while following the cow. 

60. “ Yes, my friends,” said he to them, “this is to he 
our home. Here we will build our habitations. The 
brindled cow, which has led us hither, will supply us 
with milk. We will cultivate the neighboring soil, and 
lead an innocent and happy life.” 

61. His companions joyfully assented to the plan ; and, 
in the first place, being very hungry and thirsty, they looked 
about them for the means of providing a comfortable meal. 

3 


34 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


Not far off they saw a tuft of trees, which appeared as if 
there might he a spring of water beneath them. They 
went thither to fetch some, leaving Cadmus stretched on 
the ground along with the brindled cow ; for, now that 
he had found a place of rest, it seemed as if all the weari- 
ness of his pilgrimage ever since he left King Agenor’s 
palace had fallen upon him at once. But his new friends 
had not long been gone when he was suddenly startled by 
cries, shouts, and screams, and the noise of a terrible 
struggle, and in the midst of it all a most awful hissing, 
which went right through his ears like a rough saw. 

62. Running towards the tuft of trees, he beheld the 
head and fiery eyes of an immense serpent or dragon, with 
the widest jaws that ever a dragon had, and many rows of 
horribly sharp teeth. Before Cadmus could reach the 
spot, this pitiless reptile had killed his poor companions, 
and was busily devouring them, making but a mouthful 
of each man. 

63. It appears that the fountain of water was enchanted, 
and that the dragon had been set to guard it, so that no 
mortal might ever quench his thirst there. As the neigh- 
boring inhabitants carefully avoided the spot, it was now 
a long time (not less than a hundred years or thereabouts) 
since the monster had broken his fast ; and, as was natural 
enough, his appetite had grown to be enormous, and was 
not half satisfied by the poor people whom he had just 
eaten up. When he caught sight of Cadmus, therefore, 
he set up another abominable hiss, and flung back his 
immense jaws until his mouth looked like a great red 
cavern. 

64. But Cadmus was so enraged at the destruction of his 
friends, that he cared neither for the size of the dragon’s 


THE DRAGON’S TEETH 


35 


jaws nor for his hundreds of sharp teeth. Drawing his 
sword, he rushed at the monster, and flung himself right 
into his cavernous mouth. This bold method of attack- 
ing him took the dragon by surprise ; for, in fact, Cadmus 
had leaped so far down into his throat that the rows of 
terrible teeth could not close upon him, nor do him the 
least harm in the world. Thus, though the struggle was 
a tremendous one, and though the dragon shattered the 
tuft of trees into small splinters by the lashing of his tail, 
yet, as Cadmus was all the while slashing and stabbing 
at his very vitals, it was not long before the scaly wretch 
bethought himself of slipping away. He had not gone his 
length, however, when the brave Cadmus gave him a 
sword-thrust that finished the battle ; and creeping out 
of the gateway of the creature’s jaws, there he beheld him 
still quivering through his vast bulk, although there was 
no longer life enough in him to harm a little child. 

65. But do not you suppose that it made Cadmus sorrow- 
ful to think of the melancholy fate which had befallen 
those poor, friendly people who had followed the cow 
along with him ? It seemed as if he were doomed to lose 
everybody whom he loved, or to see them perish in one 
way or another. And here he was, after all his toils and 
troubles, in a solitary place, with not a single human 
being to help him to build a hut. 

“ What shall I do ? ” cried he aloud. “ It were better 
for me to have been devoured by the dragon, as my poor 
companions were.” 

“ Cadmus,” said a voice — but whether it came from 
above or below him, or whether it spoke within his own 
breast, the young man could not tell—' “ Cadmus, pluck 
out the dragon’s teeth, and plant them in the earth.” 


36 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


66. This was a strange thing to do ; nor was it very easy to 
dig out all those deep-rooted fangs from the dead dragon’s 
jaws. But Cadmus toiled and tugged, and after pounding 
the monstrous head almost to pieces with a great stone, 
he at last collected nearly all the teeth. The next thing 
was to plant them. This, likewise, was a tedious piece of 
work, especially as Cadmus was already exhausted with 
killing the dragon, and knocking his head to pieces, and 
had nothing to dig the earth with, except his own sword- 
blade. Finally, however, a large enough piece of ground 
was turned up, and sown with this new kind of seed ; 
although half of the dragon’s teeth still remained to be 
planted some other day. 

67. Cadmus, quite out of breath, stood leaning upon his 
sword, and wondering what was to happen next. He had 
waited but a few moments, when he began to see a sight, 
which was as great a marvel as the most marvelous thing 
I ever told you about. 

68. The sun was shining slantwise over the field, and 
showed all the moist, dark soil, just like any other newly 
planted piece of ground. All at once, Cadmus fancied he 
saw something glisten very brightly, first at one spot, then 
at another, and then at a hundred and a thousand spots 
together. Soon he perceived them to be the steel heads of 
spears, sprouting up everywhere like so many stalks of 
grain, and continually growing taller and taller. Next 
appeared a vast number of bright sword-blades, thrusting 
themselves up in the same way. A moment afterwards, 
the whole surface of the ground was broken by a multi- 
tude of polished brass helmets, coming up like a crop of 
enormous beans. So rapidly did they grow, that Cadmus 
now discerned the fierce countenance of a man beneath 


THE DRAGON’S TEETH 


37 


every one. In short, before he had time to think what a 
wonderful affair it was, he beheld an abundant harvest of 
what looked like human beings, armed with helmets and 
breastplates, shields, swords, and spears ; and before they 
were well out of the earth, they brandished their weapons, 
and clashed them one against another, seeming to think, 
little while as they had yet lived, that they had wasted 
too much of life without a battle. Every tooth of the 
dragon had produced one of these fierce-looking warriors. 

69. Up sprouted, also, a great many trumpeters ; and 
with the first breath that they drew, they put their brazen 
trumpets to their lips, and sounded a tremendous and ear- 
shattering blast ; so that the whole space, just now so 
quiet and solitary, reverberated with the clash and clang 
of arms, the bray of warlike music, and the shouts of 
angry men. So enraged did they all look, that Cadmus 
fully expected them to put the whole world to the sword. 

“ Cadmus,” said the same voice which he had before 
heard, “ throw a stone into the midst of the armed men.” 

70. So Cadmus seized a large stone, and, flinging it into 
the middle of the earth-ax my, saw it strike the breast- 
plate of a gigantic and fierce-looking warrior. Immedi- 
ately on feeling the blow, he seemed to take it for granted 
that somebody had struck him ; and uplifting his weapon, 
he smote his next neighbor a blow that cleft his helmet 
asunder, and stretched him on the ground. In an instant, 
those nearest the fallen warrior began to strike at one an- 
other with their swords, and stab with their spears. The 
confusion spread wider and wider. Each man smote 
down his brother, and was himself smitten down before 
he had time to exult in his victory. The trumpeters, all 
the while* blew their blasts shriller and shriller ; each 


38 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


soldier shouted a battle-cry, and often fell with it on his 
lips. 

71. Well, this memorable battle continued to rage until 
the ground was strewn with helmeted heads that had been 
cut off. Of all the thousands that began the fight, there 
were only five left standing. These now rushed from dif- 
ferent parts of the field, and, meeting in the middle of it, 
clashed their swords, and struck at each other’s hearts as 
fiercely -as ever. 

“ Cadmus,” said the voice again, “ bid those five war- 
riors sheathe their swords. They will help you to build 
the city.” 

72. Without hesitating an instant, Cadmus stepped for- 
ward, with the aspect of a king and a leader, and extend- 
ing his drawn sword amongst them, spoke to the warriors 
in a stern and commanding voice. 

“ Sheathe your weapons ! ” said he. 

And forthwith, feeling themselves bound to obey him, 
the five remaining sons of the dragon’s teeth returned 
their swords to the scabbards, and stood before Cadmus 
in rank, eyeing him as soldiers eye their captain, while 
awaiting the word of command. 

73. These five men had probably sprung from the biggest 
of the dragon’s teeth, and were the boldest and strongest 
of the whole army. They were almost giants, indeed, and 
had good need to be so, else they never could have lived 
through so terrible a fight. They still had a very furious 
look ; and if Cadmus happened to glance aside, would 
glare at one another with fire flashing out of their eyes. 
It was strange, too, to observe how the earth, out of which 
they had so lately grown, was incrusted here and there on 
their bright breastplates, and even begrimed their faces. 


THE DRAGON’S TEETH 


39 


74. They looked him earnestly in the face, waiting for 
his next order, and evidently desiring no other employment 
than to follow him from one battle-field to another all 
over the wide world. But Cadmus was wiser than these 
earth-born creatures, with the dragon’s fierceness in them, 
and knew better how to use their strength and hardihood. 

“Come!” said he, “you are sturdy fellows; make 
yourselves useful ! Quarry some stones with those great 
swords of yours, and help me to build a city.” 

75. The five soldiers grumbled a little, and muttered that 
it was their business to overthrow cities, not to build them 
up. But Cadmus looked at them with a stern eye, and 
spoke to them in a tone of authority, so that they knew 
him for their master, and never again thought of disobey- 
ing his commands. They set to work in good earnest, 
and toiled so diligently, that in a very short time a city 
began to make its appearance. At first, to be sure, the 
workmen showed a quarrelsome disposition. Like savage 
beasts, they would doubtless have done one another mis- 
chief, if Cadmus had not kept watch over them, and 
quelled the fierce old serpent that lurked in their hearts 
when he saw it gleaming out of their wild eyes. But, in 
course of time, they got accustomed to honest labor, and 
had sense enough to feel that there was more true enjoy- 
ment in living at peace, and doing good to one’s neighbor, 
than in striking at him with a two-edged sword. 

76. And now the city was built, and there was a home in 
it for each of the workmen. But the palace of Cadmus 
was not yet erected, because they had left it till the last, in 
order to make it very commodious, as well as stately and 
beautiful. After finishing the rest of their labors, they 
all went to bed betimes, in order to rise in the gray of the 


40 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


morning, and to get at least the foundation of the edifice 
laid before nightfall. But when Cadmus arose and took 
his way towards the site where the palace was to be built, 
followed by his five sturdy workmen, there stood the most 
magnificent palace that had ever been seen in the world. 

77. It was built of marble and other beautiful kinds of 
stone, and rose high into the air, with a splendid dome 
and a portico along the front, and carved pillars, and 
everything else that befitted the palace of a mighty king. 
It had grown up out of the earth in almost as short a time 
as it had taken the armed host to spring from the dragon’s 
teeth. 

When the five workmen beheld the dome, with the 
morning sunshine making it look golden and glorious, 
they gave a great shout. 

“Long live King Cadmus,” they cried, “in his beauti- 
ful palace ! ” 

78. And the new king, with his five faithful followers, 
ascended the palace-steps. Halting at the entrance, they 
gazed through a long vista of lofty pillars that were ranged 
from end to end of a great hall. At the farther extremity 
of this hall, approaching slowly towards him, Cadmus be- 
held a female figure, wonderfully beautiful, and adorned 
with a royal robe, and a crown of diamonds over her 
golden ringlets, and the richest necklace that ever a queen 
wore. His heart thrilled with delight. He fancied her 
his long-lost sister Europa, now grown to womanhood, 
coming to make him happy, and to repay him with her 
sweet sisterly affection for all those weary wanderings in 
quest of her since he left King Agenor’s palace — for the 
tears that he had shed on parting with Phoenix, and Cilix, 
and Thasus — for the heart-breakings that had made the 


THE DRAGON’S TEETH 


41 


whole world seem dismal to him oyer his dear mother’s 
grave. 

79. But, as Cadmus advanced to meet the beautiful 
stranger, he saw that her features were unknown to him, 
although, in the little time that it required to tread along 
the hall, he had already felt a sympathy betwixt himself 
and her. 

“ No, Cadmus, ” said the same voice that had spoken to 
him in the field of the armed men, “ this is not that dear 
sister Europa whom you have sought so faithfully all over 
the wide world. This is Harmonia (Har-mon'-e-a), a 
daughter of the sky, who is given you instead of sister, 
and brothers, and friend, and mother. You will find all 
those dear ones in her alone.” 

80. So King Cadmus dwelt in the palace with his new 
friend, Harmonia. Before many years went by, there was 
a group of rosy little children sporting in the great hall, 
and on the marble steps of the palace, and running joy- 
fully to meet King Cadmus, when affairs of state left him 
at leisure to play with them. They called him father, 
and Queen Harmonia mother. The five old soldiers of 
the dragon’s teeth grew very fond of these small children, 
and were never weary of showing them how to flourish 
wooden swords and march in military order. 


THE MINOTAUR 


1. I;sr the old city of Troezen (Tre'-zen), 1 at the foot of 
a lofty mountain, there lived, a very long time ago, a little 
boy named Theseus (The'-sus). His grandfather, King 
Pittheus (Pit'-thus), was the sovereign of that country, 
and was looked upon as a very wise man ; so that Theseus, 
being brought up in the royal palace, and being naturally 
a bright lad, could hardly fail to profit by the old king’s 
instructions. His mother’s name was ..Ethra (E'-thra). 
As for his father, the boy had never seen him. But, from 
his earliest remembrance, iEthra used to go with little 
Theseus into a wood, and sit down upon a moss-grown 
rock, which was sunk deep into the earth. Here she 
often talked with her son about his father, and said that 
he was called iEgeus (E'-gus), and that he was a great 
king, and ruled over Attica, 2 and dwelt at Athens, which 


1 Troezen. A city situated in the southeastern part of Argolis on the Saronic 
Gulf. 

2 Attica. A district in the east of Greece, between the Saronic Gulf and the 
Euboean Strait. Attica was ruled over by the City of Athens ; in fact, politi- 
cally, it was a part of Athens. After the democratic reforms of Cleisthenes, in 
510 B. C., the whole of Attica, including the City of Athens, was divided up 
into 100 demes or townships, and the citizens of all the demes had equal politi- 
cal rights. Athens was what is known as a city state— an institution which 
existed in perfection only in Greece. 

42 


THE MINOTAUR 


43 


was as famous a city as any in the world. Theseus was 
very fond of hearing about King iEgeus, and often asked 
his good mother ^Ethra why he did not come and live 
with them at Troezen. 

2. “ Ah, my dear son,” answered iEthra, with a sigh, 
“ a monarch has his people to take care of. The men and 
women over whom he rules are in the place of children to 
him ; and he can seldom spare time to love his own chil- 
dren as other parents do. Your father will never be able 
to leave his kingdom for the sake of seeing his little boy.” 

“Well, but, dear mother,” asked the boy, “why can- 
not I go to this famous city of Athens, and tell King 
iEgeus that I am his son ? ” 

“That may happen by-and-by,” said ^Ethra. “Be 
patient, and we shall see. You are not yet big and strong 
enough to set out on such an errand.” 

3. “ And how soon shall I be strong enough ? ” Theseus 
asked. 

“You are but a tiny boy as yet,” replied his mother. 
“ See if you can lift this rock on which we are sitting.” 

The little fellow had a great opinion of his own 
strength. So, grasping the rough rock, he tugged and 
toiled amain, and got himself quite out of breath, without 
being able to stir the heavy stone. It seemed to be rooted 
into the ground. No wonder he could not move it ; for 
it would have taken all the force of a very strong man to 
lift it out of its earthy bed. 

4. His mother stood looking on, with a sad kind of 
smile on her lips and in her eyes, to see the zealous and 
yet puny efforts of her little boy. She could not help 
being sorrowful at finding him already so impatient to 
begin his adventures in the world. 


u 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


“ You see how it is, my dear Theseus,” said she ; “ you 
must have far more strength before I can trust you to go 
to Athens, and tell King ^Egeus that you are his son. 
But when you can lift this rock, and show me what is 
hidden beneath it, I promise you I will give you leave to 
go.” 

5. Often and often, after this, did Theseus ask his 
mother whether it was yet time for him to go to Athens ; 
and still his mother pointed to the rock, and told him 
that, for years to come, he could not be strong enough to 
move it. And again and again the rosy-cheeked and 
curly-headed boy would tug and strain at the huge mass 
of stone, striving, child as he was, to do what a giant 
could hardly have done without taking both of his great 
hands to the task. Meanwhile the rock seemed to be 
sinking farther and farther into the ground. The moss 
grew over it thicker and thicker, until at last it looked 
almost like a soft green seat, with only a few gray knobs 
of granite peeping out. The overhanging trees, also, 
shed their brown leaves upon it, as often as the autumn 
came ; and at its base grew ferns and wild flowers, some 
of which crept quite over its surface. To all appearance, 
the rock was as firmly fastened as any other part of the 
earth. 

6. But, difficult as the matter looked, Theseus was now 
growing up to be so strong a lad, that, in his own opinion, 
the time would quickly come when he might hope to move 
this ponderous lump of stone. 

“ Mother, I do believe it has started ! ” cried he, after 
one of his attempts. “ The earth around it is certainly a 
little cracked ! ” 

“ No, no, child ! ” his mother hastily answered. “ It 


THE MINOTAUR 


45 


is not possible you can have moved it, boy as you still 
are.” 

7. Nor would she be convinced, although Theseus 
showed her the place where he fancied that the stem of a 
flower had been partly uprooted by the movement of the 
rock. But HSthra sighed and looked disquieted ; for now 
she began to be conscious that her son was no longer a 
child, and that in a little while hence, she must send him 
forth among the perils and troubles of the world. 

8. It was not more than a year afterwards when they 
were again sitting on the moss-covered stone. ^Ethra had 
once more told him the oft-repeated story of his father, 
and how gladly he would receive Theseus at his palace, 
and how he would present him to his courtiers and the 
people, and tell them that here was the heir of his domin- 
ions. The eyes of Theseus glowed with joy and longing, 
and he could hardly sit still to hear his mother speak. 

“Dear mother H£thra,” he exclaimed, “I never felt 
half so strong as now ! I am no longer a child, nor a boy, 
nor a mere youth ! I feel myself a man ! It is now time 
to make one earnest trial to move the stone.” 

“Ah, my dearest Theseus,” replied his mother, “not 
yet ! not yet ! ” 

“Yes, mother,” said he, resolutely, “the time has 
come ! ” 

9. Then Theseus bent himself in good earnest to the 
task, and strained every sinew, with manly strength and 
resolution. He put his whole brave heart into the effort. 
He wrestled with the big and sluggish stone, as if it had 
been a living enemy. He heaved, he lifted, he resolved 
now to succeed, or else to perish there, and let the rock 
be his monument forever ! AEthra stood gazing at him, 


46 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


and clasped her hands, partly with a mother’s pride, and 
partly with a mother’s sorrow. The great rock stirred ! 
Yes ; it was raised slowly from the bedded moss and earth, 
uprooting the shrubs and flowers along with it, and was 
turned upon its side. Theseus had conquered ! 

While taking breath, he looked joyfully at his mother, 
and she smiled upon him through her tears. 

“Yes, Theseus,” she said, “the time has come, and 
you must stay no longer at my side ! See what King 
^Egeus, your royal father, left for you, beneath the stone, 
when he lifted it in his mighty arms, and laid it on the 
spot whence you have now removed it.” 

10. Theseus looked, and saw that the rock had been 
placed over another slab of stone, containing a' cavity 
within it ; so that it somewhat resembled a roughly made 
chest or coffer, of which the upper mass had served as 
the lid. Within the cavity lay a sword with a golden hilt, 
and a pair of sandals. 

“That was your father’s sword,” said iEthra, “and 
those were his sandals. When he went to be King of 
Athens, he bade me treat you as a child until you should 
prove yourself a man by lifting this heavy stone. That 
task being accomplished, you are to put on his sandals, 
in order to follow in your father’s footsteps, and to gird 
on his sword, so that you may fight giants and dragons, 
as KingiEgeus did in bis youth.” 

“ I will set out for Athens this very day ! ” cried Theseus. 

11. But his mother persuaded him to stay a day or two 
longer, while she got ready some things necessary for his 
journey. When his grandfather, the wise King Pittheus, 
heard that Theseus intended to present himself at his 
father’s palace, he earnestly advised him to get on board 


THE MINOTAUR 


47 


a vessel, and go by sea, because he might thus arrive 
within fifteen miles of Athens, without either fatigue or 
danger. 

“ The roads are very bad by land,” quoth the venerable 
king ; “ and they are terribly infested with robbers and 
monsters. A mere lad, like Theseus, is not fit to be 
trusted on such a perilous journey, all by himself. No, 
no ; let him go by sea ! ” 

12. But when Theseus heard of robbers and monsters, he 
became all open-eyed and earnest attention, and was so 
much the more eager to take the road along which they 
were to be met with. On the third day, therefore, he 
bade a respectful farewell to his grandfather, thanking 
him for all his kindness ; and, after affectionately em- 
bracing his mother, he set forth, with a good many of her 
tears glistening on his cheeks, and some, if the truth must 
be told, that had gushed out of his own eyes. But he 
let the sun and wind dry them, and walked stoutly on, 
playing with the golden hilt of his sword, and taking very 
manly strides in his father’s sandals. 

13. I can only tell you very shortly of the adventures 
that befell Theseus on the road to Athens. It is enough 
to say, that he quite cleared that part of the country of the 
robbers, about whom King Pittheus had been so much 
alarmed. One of these bad people was named Procrustes 
(Pro-crus'-tez). He was indeed a terrible fellow, and had 
an ugly way of making fun of the poor travelers who hap- 
pened to fall into his clutches. In his cavern he had a 
bed, on which, with great pretense of hospitality, he in- 
vited his guests to lie down ; but if they happened to be 
shorter than the bed, this wicked villain stretched them 
out by main force ; or, if they were too tall, he lopped off 


48 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


their heads or feet, and laughed at what he had done, as 
an excellent joke. Thus, however weary a man might be, 
he would rather journey slowly along than lie in the bed 
of Procrustes. Another of these robbers, named Scron 
(Skron), must likewise have been a very great scoundrel. 
He was in the habit of flinging his victims off a high cliff 
into the sea ; and in order to give him exactly his deserts, 
Theseus tossed him off the very same place. But the sea 
would not pollute itself by receiving such a bad person 
into its bosom ; neither would the earth, having once got 
rid of him, consent to take him back ; so that between 
the cliff and the sea, Scron stuck fast in the air, which 
was forced to bear the burden of his wickedness. 

14. After these memorable deeds, Theseus heard of an 
enormous sow, which ran wild, and was the terror of all 
the farmers round about ; and, as he did not consider 
himself above doing any good thing that came in his way, 
he killed this monstrous creature, and gave the carcass to 
the poor people for food. 

Thus, by the time he reached his journey’s end, 
Theseus had done many valiant feats with his father’s 
golden-liilted sword, and had gained the renown of being 
one of the bravest young men of the day. His fame trav- 
eled faster than he did, and reached Athens before him. 
As he entered the city, he heard the inhabitants talking 
at the street-corners and saying that Hercules * 1 (Her'-ku- 
les) was brave, and Jason 2 (Ja'-son) too, and Castor 


1 Hercules. An early hero of Greece who accomplished wonderful feats of 
strength. At his death the gods took him to dwell among themselves. 

1 Jason. A hero who, with many others, sailed in the Argo to win the 

“ Golden Fleece.” See Hawthorne’s tale. 


THE MINOTAUR 


49 


(Kas'-tor) and Pollux 1 (Pol'-lux) likewise, but that The- 
seus, the son of their own king, would turn out as great 
a hero as the best of them. Theseus took longer strides 
on hearing this, and fancied himself sure of a magnificent 
reception at his father’s court, since he came thither with 
Fame to blow her trumpet before him, and cry to King 
HCgeus, “ Behold your son ! ” 

15. He little suspected, that here in this very Athens, 
where his father reigned, a greater danger awaited him 
than any which he had encountered on the road. Yet 
this was the truth. You must understand that the father 
of Theseus, though not very old in years, was almost worn 
out with the cares of government, and had thus grown 
aged before his time. His nephews, not expecting him 
to live a very great while, intended to get all the power 
of the kingdom into their own hands. But, when they 
heard that Theseus had arrived in Athens, and learned 
what a gallant young man he was, they saw that he would 
not be at all the kind of person to let them steal away his 
father’s crown and scepter, which ought to be his own by 
right of inheritance. Thus these bad-hearted nephews 
of King iEgeus, who were the cousins of Theseus, at once 
became his enemies. A still more dangerous enemy was 
Medea (Me-de'-a), 2 the wicked enchantress ; for she was 
now the king’s wife, and wanted to give the kingdom to 


1 Castor and Pollux. Called the Dioscuri. Two heroic brothers afterwards 
worshipped by the Greeks and Romans. 

2 Medea. This is the same Medea who afterwards helps Jason win the 
Golden Fleece. We notice that Theseus accompanies Jason on that quest, 
and finds Medea then a young woman. An error resulting from such dis- 
regard for the possibilities of time is called an anachronism. 

4 


50 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


her son Medus, (Me'-dus), instead of letting it be given 
to the son of iEthra, whom she hated. 

16. It so happened that the king’s nephews met Theseus, 
and found out who he was, just as he reached the entrance 
to the royal palace. With all their evil designs against 
him, they pretended to be their cousin’s best friends, and 
expressed great joy at making his acquaintance. They 
proposed to him that he should come into the king’s pres- 
ence as a stranger, in order to try whether iEgeus would 
discover in the young man’s features any likeness either 
to himself or his mother ^Ethra, and thus recognize him 
for a son. Theseus consented ; for he fancied that his 
father would know him in a moment, by the love that was 
in his heart. But, while he waited at the door, the 
nephews ran and told King iEgeus that a young man had 
arrived in Athens, who, to their certain knowledge in- 
tended to put him to death, and get possession of his 
royal crown. 

“And he is now waiting for admission to your majesty’s 
presence,” added they. 

“Aha ! ” cried the old king, on hearing this. “ Why, 
he must be very wicked indeed ! Pray, what would you 
advise me to do with him ? ” 

17. In reply to this question, the wicked Medea put in 
her word. As I have already told you, she was a famous 
enchantress. According to some stories, she was in the 
habit of boiling old people in a large caldron, under pre- 
tense of making them young again ; but King ^Egeus, I 
suppose, did not fancy such an uncomfortable way of 
growing young, or perhaps was contented to be old, and 
therefore would never let himself be put into the caldron. 
If there were time to spare from more important matters, 


THE MINOTAUR 


51 


I should be glad to tell you of Medea’s fiery chariot, 
drawn by winged dragons, in which the enchantress used 
often to take an airing among the clouds. It was this 
chariot, in fact, that first brought her to Athens, where 
she had done nothing but mischief ever since her ar- 
rival. But these and many other wonders must be left 
untold ; and it is enough to say that Medea, amongst a 
thousand other bad things, knew howto prepare a poison, 
that was instantly fatal to any one who might so much as 
touch it with his lips. 

18. So when the king asked what he should do with 
Theseus, this naughty woman had an answer ready at her 
tongue’s end. 

“ Leave that to me, please your majesty,” she replied. 
“ Only admit this evil-minded young man to your pres- 
ence, treat him civilly, and invite him to drink a goblet 
of wine. Your majesty well knows that I sometimes amuse 
myself with distilling very powerful medicines. Here is 
one of them in this small phial. As to what it is made 
of, that is one of my secrets of state. Do but let me put 
a single drop into the goblet and let the young man taste 
it, and I will answer for it, he will quite lay aside the bad 
designs with which he comes hither. 

19. As she said this, Medea smiled ; but, for all her 
smiling face, she meant nothing less than to poison the 
poor innocent Theseus before his father’s eyes. And 
King ^Egeus, like most other kings, thought any punish- 
ment mild enough for a person who was accused of plot- 
ting against his life. He therefore made little or no ob- 
jection to Medea’s scheme, and as soon as the poisonous 
wine was ready, gave orders that the young stranger 
should be admitted into his presence. The goblet was 


52 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


set on a table beside the king’s throne ; and a fly, mean- 
ing just to sip a little from the brim, immediately tumbled 
into it, dead. Observing this, Medea looked round at the 
nephews and smiled again. 

20. When Theseus was ushered into the royal apartment, 
the only object that he seemed to behold was the white- 
bearded old king. There he sat on liis magnificent throne, 
a dazzling crown on his head and a scepter in his hand. 
His aspect was stately and majestic, although his years 
and infirmities weighed heavily upon him, as if each year 
were a lump of lead, and each infirmity a ponderous 
stone, and all were bundled up together, and laid upon 
his weary shoulders. Tears both of joy and sorrow sprang 
into the young man’s eyes ; for he thought how sad it was 
to see his dear father so infirm, and how sweet it would be 
to support him with his own youthful strength, and to 
cheer him up with the alacrity of his loving spirit. When 
a son takes his father into his warm heart, it renews the 
old man’s youth in a better way than by the heat of 
Medea’s magic caldron. And this was what Theseus re- 
solved to do. He could scarcely wait to see whether King 
iEgeus would recognize him, so eager was he to throw 
himself into his arms. 

21. Advancing to the foot of the throne, he attempted 
to make a little speech, which he had been thinking about, 
as he came up the stairs. But he was almost choked by a 
great many tender feelings that gushed out of his heart 
and swelled into his throat, all struggling to find utter- 
ance together. And therefore, unless he could have laid 
his full, over-brimming heart into the king’s hand, poor 
Theseus knew not what to do or say. The cunning 
Medea observed what was passing in the young man’s 


THE MINOTAUR 


53 


mind. She was more wicked at that moment than ever 
she had been before ; for she did her worst to turn all 
this unspeakable love with which Theseus was agitated, 
to his own ruin and destruction. 

“Does not your majesty see his confusion?” she 
whispered in the king’s ear. “ He is so conscious of 
guilt, that he trembles and cannot speak. The wretch 
lives too long ! Quick ! offer him the wine ! ” 

22. Now King iEgeus had been gazing earnestly at the 
young stranger, as he drew near the throne. There was 
something, he knew not what, either in his white brow, 
or in the fine expression of his mouth, or in his beautiful 
and tender eyes, that made him indistinctly feel as if he 
had seen this youth before ; as if, indeed he had trotted 
him on his knee when a baby, and had beheld him grow- 
ing to be a stalwart man, while he himself grew old. 
But Medea guessed how the king felt, and would not 
suffer him to yield to these kindly feelings ; although 
they were the voice of his deepest heart, telling him as 
plainly as it could speak, that here was his dear son, and 
HSthra’s son, coming to claim him for a father. The en- 
chantress again whispered in the king’s ear, and compelled 
him, by her witchcraft, to see everything under a false 
aspect. 

23. He made up his mind, therefore, to let Theseus 
drink of the poisoned wine. 

“ Young man,” said he, “ you are welcome ! I am 
proud to show hospitality to so heroic a youth. Do me 
the favor to drink the contents of this goblet. It is brim- 
ming over as you see, with delicious wine, such as I be- 
stow only on those who are worthy of it ! None is more 
worthy to drink it than yourself ! ” 


54 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


24. So saying, King iEgeus took the golden goblet 
from the table, and was about to offer it to Theseus. But 
partly through his infirmities, and partly because it seemed 
so sad a thing to take away this young man’s life, however 
wicked he might be, and partly, no doubt, because his 
heart was wiser than his head, and quaked within him at 
the thought of what he was going to do — for all these 
reasons, the king’s hand trembled so much that a great 
deal of the wine slopped over. In order to strengthen his 
purpose, and fearing lest the whole of the precious poison 
should be wasted, one of his nephews now whispered to 
him — 

25. “ Has your majesty any doubt of this stranger’s 
guilt ? There is the very sword with which he meant to 
slay you. How sharp, and bright, and terrible it is ! 
Quick ! — let him taste the wine ; or perhaps he may do 
the deed even yet.” 

At these words, H^geus drove every thought and feel- 
ing out of his breast, except the one idea how justly the 
young man deserved to be put to death. He sat erect on 
his throne, and held out the goblet of wine with a steady 
hand, and bent on Theseus a frown of kingly severity : 
for, after all, he had too noble a spirit to murder even 
a treacherous enemy with a deceitful smile upon his 
face. 

26. “ Drink ! ” said he, in the stern tone with which 
he was wont to condemn a criminal to be beheaded. 
“ You have well deserved of me such wine as this ! ” 

Theseus held out his hand to take the wine. But, be- 
fore he touched it, King iEgeus trembled again. His 
eyes had fallen on the gold-hilted sword that hung at the 
young man’s side. He drew back the goblet. 


THE MINOTAUR 


55 


“ That sword ! ” he exclaimed ; “ how came you by 
it?” 

27. “It was my father’s sword,” replied Theseus, with 
a tremulous voice. “These were his sandals. My dear 
mother (her name is iEthra) told me his story while I was 
yet a little child. But it is only a month since I grew 
strong enough to lift the heavy stone, and take the sword 
and sandals from beneath it, and come to Athens to seek 
my father.” 

“ My son ! my son ! ” cried King ^Egeus, flinging away 
the fatal goblet, and tottering down from the throne to 
fall into the arms of Theseus. “Yes, these are iEthra’s 
eyes. It is my son.” 

28. I know not what became of the king’s nephews. 
But when the wicked Medea saw this new turn of affairs, 
she hurried out of the room, and going to her private 
chamber, lost no time in setting her enchantments to 
work. In a few moments she heard a great noise of hiss- 
ing snakes outside the chamber window ; and, behold ! 
there was her fiery chariot, with its four huge-winged ser- 
pents, wriggling and twisting in the air, flourishing their 
tails higher than the top of the palace, and all ready to 
set off on an aerial journey. Medea stayed only long 
enough to take with her her son, and to steal the crown 
jewels, together with the king’s best robes, and whatever 
other valuable things she could lay hands on ; and getting 
into the chariot, she whipped up the snakes, and ascended 
high over the city. 

29. The king, hearing the hiss of the serpents, scrambled 
as fast as he could to the window, and cried out to the 
abominable enchantress never to come back. The whole 
people of Athens, too, who had run out of doors to see 


56 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


this wonderful spectacle, set up a shout of joy at the pros- 
pect of getting rid of her. Medea, almost bursting with 
rage, uttered precisely such a hiss as one of her own 
snakes, only ten times more venomous and spiteful ; and 
glaring fiercely out of the blaze of the chariot, she shook 
her hands over the multitude below, as if she were scat- 
tering a million of curses among them. In so doing, how- 
ever, she happened to let fall about five hundred diamonds 
of the first water, together with a thousand great pearls, 
and two thousand emeralds, rubies, sapphires, opals, and 
topazes, to which she had helped herself out of the king’s 
strong-box. All these came pelting down, like a shower 
of many-colored hailstones, upon the heads of grown peo- 
ple and children, who forthwith gathered them up, and 
carried them back to the palace. But King ^Egeus told 
them that they were welcome to the whole, and to twice 
as many more, if he had them, for the sake of his delight 
at finding his son, and losing the wicked Medea. And, 
indeed, if you had seen how hateful was her last look, as 
the flaming chariot flew upward, you would not have won- 
dered that both king and people should think her depart- 
ure a good riddance. 

30. And now Prince Theseus was taken into great favor 
by his royal father. The old king was never weary of 
having him sit beside him on his throne (which was quite 
wide enough for two), and of hearing him tell about his 
dear mother and his childhood, and his many boyish efforts 
to lift the ponderous stone. Theseus, however, was much 
too brave and active a young man to be willing to spend 
all his time in relating things which had already happened. 
His ambition was to perform other and more heroic deeds, 
which should be better worth telling in prose and verse. 


THE MINOTAUR 


57 


Nor had he been long in Athens before he caught and 
chained a terrible mad bull, and made a public show of 
him, greatly to the wonder and admiration of good King 
H£geus and his subjects. But pretty soon he undertook 
an affair that made all his foregone adventures seem like 
mere boy’s play. The occasion of it was as follows : — 

31. One morning when Prince Theseus awoke, he 
fancied that he must have had a very sorrowful dream, and 
it was still running in his mind, even now that his eyes were 
open. For it appeared as if the air was full of a melan- 
choly wail ; and when he listened more attentively, he 
could hear sobs, and groans, and screams of woe, mingled 
with deep, quiet sighs, which came from the king’s palace, 
and from the streets, and from the temples, and from 
every habitation in the city. And all these mournful 
noises, issuing out of thousands of separate hearts, united 
themselves into the one great sound of affliction which 
had startled Theseus from slumber. He put on his clothes 
as quickly as he could (not forgetting his sandals and 
gold-hilted sword), and, hastening to the king, inquired 
what it all meant. 

32. “Alas, my son!” quoth King iEgeus, heaving a 
long sigh, “ there is a very great sorrow before us ! This 
is the most woful anniversary in the whole year. It is 
the day when we annually draw lots to see which of the 
youths and maidens of Athens shall go to be devoured by 
the horrible Minotaur !” (Min'-o-tor.) 

“ The Minotaur ! ” exclaimed Prince Theseus ; and like 
a brave young prince as he was, he put his hand to the 
hilt of his sword. “What kind of a monster may that 
be ? Is it not possible, at the risk of one’s life, to slay 
him ? ” 


58 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


33. But King iEgeus shook his venerable head, and, to 
convince Theseus that it was quite a hopeless case, he gave 
him an explanation of the whole affair. He told him that 
in the island of Crete (Kret), 1 there lived a certain dreadful 
monster, called a Minotaur, which was shaped partly like 
a man and partly like a hull, and was altogether a very 
hideous sort of creature. If he were suffered to exist at 
all, it should have been on some desert island, or in the 
duskiness of some deep cavern, where nobody would ever 
be tormented by his abominable aspect. But King Minos 
(Ml'-nos), who reigned over Crete, laid out a* vast deal of 
money in building a habitation for the Minotaur, and took 
great care of his health and comfort, merely for mischief’s 
sake. 

34. A few years before this time, there had been a war 
between the city of Athens and the island of Crete, in 
which the Athenians were beaten and compelled to beg 
for peace. Ko peace could they obtain, however, except 
on condition that they should send seven young men and 
seven maidens, every year, to be devoured by the pet 
monster of the cruel King Minos. For three years past 
this grievous calamity had been borne. And the sobs, 
and groans, and shrieks, with which the city was now 
filled, were caused by the people’s woe, because the fatal 
day had come again, when the fourteen victims were to 
be chosen by lot. And the old people feared lest their 
sons or daughters might be taken, and the youths and 
damsels dreaded lest they themselves might be destined 
to glut the ravenous maw of that horrible man-brute. 

35. But when Theseus heard the story, he straightened 


1 Crete. An island in the southern part of the Aegean Sea. 


THE MINOTAUR 


59 


himself up, so that he seemed taller than ever before ; 
and as for his face, it was indignant, despiteful, bold, 
tender, and compassionate, all in one look. 

“ Let the people of Athens, this year, draw lots for only 
six young men, instead of seven, ” said he. “ J will myself 
be the seventh ; and let the Minotaur devour me, if he 
can ! ” 

“ 0 my dear son,” cried King iEgeus, “ why should 
you expose yourself to this horrible fate ? You are a royal 
prince, and have a right to hold yourself above the des- 
tinies of common men.” 

36. “ It is because I am a prince, your son, and the 
rightful heir of your kingdom, that I freely take upon me 
the calamity of your subjects,” answered Theseus. “ And 
you, my father, being king over this people, and answer- 
able to heaven for their welfare, are bound to sacrifice 
what is dearest to you, rather than that the son or daughter 
of the poorest citizen should come to any harm.” 

37. The old king shed tears, and besought Theseus not 
to leave him desolate in his old age, more especially as he 
had but just begun to know the happiness of possessing a 
good and valiant son. Theseus, however, felt that he 
was right, and therefore would not give up his resolution. 
But he assured his father that he did not intend to be 
eaten up, unresistingly, like a sheep, and that if the Mino- 
taur devoured him, it should not be without a battle to 
the death. And finally, since he could not help it, King 
iEgeus consented to let him go. So a vessel was got 
ready, and rigged with black sails ; and Theseus, with six 
other young men, and seven tender and beautiful damsels, 
came down to the harbor to embark. A sorrowful multi- 
tude accompanied them to the shore. There was the poor 


60 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


old king, too, leaning on his son’s arm, and looking as if 
his single heart held all the grief of Athens. 

Just as Prince Theseus was going on board, his father 
bethought himself of one last word to say. 

38. “My beloved son,” said he, grasping the prince’s 
hand, “ you observe that the sails of this vessel are black ; 
as indeed they ought to be, since it goes upon a voyage of 
sorrow and despair. Now, being weighed down with in- 
firmities, I know not whether I can survive till the vessel 
shall return. But, as long as I do live, I shall creep daily 
to the top of yonder cliff, to watch if there be a sail upon 
the sea. And, dearest Theseus, if, by some happy chance, 
you should escape the jaws of the Minotaur, then tear 
down those dismal sails, and hoist others that shall be 
bright as the sunshine. Beholding them on the horizon, 
myself and all the people will know that you are coming 
back victorious, and will welcome you with such a festal 
shout as Athens never heard before.” 

39. Theseus promised that he would do so. Then going 
on board, the mariners trimmed the vessel’s black sails to 
the wind. But by and by, when they had got fairly out 
to sea, there came a stiff breeze from the northwest, and 
drove them along as merrily over the white-capped waves 
as if they had been going on the most delightful errand. 
At length the high blue mountains of Crete began to show 
themselves among the far-off clouds. 

40. Theseus stood among the sailors gazing eagerly 
towards the fast-approaching land ; although, as yet, it 
seemed hardly more substantial than the clouds, amidst 
which the mountains were looming up. Once or twice he 
fancied that he saw a glare of some bright object, a long 
way off, flinging a gleam across the waves. 


THE MINOTAUR 


61 


“ Did you see that flash of light ? ” he inquired of the 
master of the vessel. 

“No, prince ; but I have seen it before,” answered the 
master. “ It came from Talus (Ta'-lus), I suppose.” 

41. As the breeze came fresher just then, the master 
was busy trimming his sails, and had no more time to 
answer questions. But, while the vessel flew faster and 
faster towards Crete, Theseus was astonished to behold 
a human figure, gigantic in size, which appeared to be 
striding, with a measured movement, along the margin of 
the island. It stepped from cliff to cliff, and sometimes 
from one headland to another, while the sea foamed and 
thundered on the shore beneath, and dashed its jets of 
spray over the giant’s feet. What was still more remark- 
able, whenever the sun shone on this huge figure, it 
flickered and glimmered. Its vast countenance, too, had 
a metallic luster, and threw great flashes of splendor 
through the air. The folds of its garments, moreover, 
instead of waving in the wind, fell heavily over its limbs, 
as if woven of some kind of metal. 

42. The nearer the vessel came, the more Theseus 
wondered what this immense giant could be, and whether 
it actually had life or no. For, though it walked, and 
made other life-like motions, there yet was a kind of jerk 
in its gait, which, together with its brazen aspect, caused 
the young prince to suspect that it was no true giant, but 
only a wonderful piece of machinery. The figure looked 
all the more terrible because it carried an enormous brass 
club on its shoulder. 

“ What is this wonder ? ” Theseus asked of the master 
of the vessel, who was now at leisure to answer him. 

“It is* Talus, the Man of Brass,” said the master. 


62 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


“ And is he a live giant, or a brazen image ?” asked 
Theseus. 

43. “That, truly,” replied the master, “is the point 
which has always perplexed me. Some say, indeed, that 
this Talus was hammered out for King Minos by Vul- 
can 1 himself, the most skillful of all workers in metal. 
But who ever saw a brazen image that had sense enough 
to walk round an island three times a-day, as this giant 
walks round the island of Crete, challenging every vessel 
that comes nigh the shore ? And, on the other hand, 
what living thing, unless his sinews were made of brass, 
would not be weary of marching eighteen hundred miles 
in the twenty-four hours, as Talus does, without ever 
sitting down to rest ? ” 

44. Still the vessel went bounding onward ; and now 
Theseus could hear the brazen clang of the giant’s foot- 
steps, as he trod heavily upon the sea-beaten rocks, some 
of which were seen to crack and crumble into the foamy 
waves beneath his tread. As they approached the en- 
trance of the port, the giant straddled clear across it with 
a foot firmly planted on each headland, and uplifting his 
club to such a height that its butt-end was hidden in a 
cloud, he stood in that formidable posture, with the sun 
gleaming over his metallic surface. There seemed nothing 
else to be expected but that the next moment, he would 
fetch his great clhb down, and smash the vessel into a 
thousand pieces, without heeding how many innocent 
people he might destroy. But just when Theseus and his 
companions thought the blow was coming, the brazen lips 
unclosed themselves, and the figure spoke. 


1 Vulcan. The God of Fire and, hence, of all metal working. 


THE MINOTAUR 


63 


45. “ Whence come you, strangers ? ” 

And when the ringing voice ceased, there was just such 
a reverberation as you may have heard within a great 
church bell, for a moment or two after the stroke of the 
hammer. 

“ From Athens ! ” shouted the master in reply. 

“ On what errand ? ” thundered the Man of Brass. 

And he whirled his club aloft more threateningly than 
ever, as if he were about to smite them with a thunder- 
stroke right amidships, because Athens, so little while 
ago, had been at war with Crete. 

46. “We bring the seven youths and the seven maid- 
ens, v answered the master, “to be devoured by the Min- 
otaur ! ” 

“ Pass ! ” cried the brazen giant. 

That one loud word rolled all about the sky, while 
again there was a booming echo within the figure’s breast. 
The vessel glided between the headlands of the port, and 
the giant resumed his march. In a few moments, this 
wondrous sentinel was far away, flashing in the distant 
sunshine, and marching with immense strides around the 
island of Crete, as it was his never-ceasing task to do. 

47. No sooner had they entered the harbor than a 
party of the guards of King Minos came down to the 
water-side, and took charge of the fourteen young men 
and damsels. Surrounded by these armed warriors, Prince 
Theseus and his companions were led to the king’s palace, 
and ushered into his presence. Now Minos was a stern 
and pitiless king. If the figure that guarded Crete was 
made of brass, then the monarch who ruled over it might 
be thought to have a still harder metal in his breast, and 
might have been called a man of iron. He bent his shaggy 


64 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


brows upon the poor Athenian victims. Any other mortal, 
beholding their fresh and tender beauty, and their inno- 
cent looks, would have felt himself sitting on thorns un- 
til he had made every one of them happy, by bidding 
them go free as the summer wind. But this heartless 
Minos cared only to examine whether they were plump 
enough to satisfy the Minotaur’s appetite. 

48. One after another, King Minos called these pale, 
frightened youths and sobbing maidens to his footstool, 
examined them carefully, and dismissed them with a nod to 
his guards. But when his eyes rested on Theseus, the 
king looked at him more attentively, because his face was 
calm and brave. 

“Young man,” asked he, with his stern voice, “are 
you not appalled at the certainty of being devoured by 
this terrible Minotaur ? ” 

49. “I have offered my life in a good cause,” answered 
Theseus, “ and therefore I give it freely and gladly. But 
thou, King Minos, art thou not thyself appalled, who, 
year after year, hast perpetrated this dreadful wrong, by 
giving seven innocent youths and as many maidens to be 
devoured by a monster ? Dost thou not tremble, wicked 
king, to turn thine eyes inward on thine own heart ? Sit- 
ting there on thy golden throne, and in thy robes of 
majesty, I tell thee to thy face, King Minos, thou art a 
more hideous monster than the Minotaur himself ! ” 

50. “ Aha ! do you think me so ? ” cried the king, 
laughing in his cruel way. “To-morrow, at breakfast- 
time, you shall have an opportunity of judging which is 
the greater monster, the Minotaur or the king ! Take 
them away, guards ; and let this free-spoken youth be the 
Minotaur’s first morsel ! ” 


THE MINOTAUR 


65 


51. Near the king’s throne stood his daughter Ariadne 
(A'-re-ad'-na). She was a beautiful and tender-hearted 
maiden, and looked at these poor doomed captives with 
very different feelings from those of the iron-breasted 
King Minos. She really wept, indeed, at the idea of how 
much human happiness would be needlessly thrown away, 
by giving so many young people, in the first bloom and 
rose-blossom of their lives, to be eaten up by a creature 
who, no doubt, would have preferred a fat ox, or even a 
large pig, to the plumpest of them. And when she be- 
held the brave, spirited figure of Prince Theseus bearing 
himself so calmly in his terrible peril, she grew a hundred 
times more pitiful than before. As the guards were tak- 
ing him away she flung herself at the king’s feet, and be- 
sought him to set all the captives free, and especially this 
one young man. 

52. “ Peace, foolish girl ! ” answered King Minos. 
“ What hast thou to do with an affair like this ? It is a 
matter of state policy, and therefore quite beyond thy 
weak comprehension. Go, water thy flowers, and think 
no more of these Athenian caitiffs, whom the Minotaur 
shall as certainly eat up for breakfast as I will eat a par- 
tridge for my supper.” 

53. So saying, the king looked cruel enough to devour 
Theseus and all the rest of the captives himself, had there 
been no Minotaur to save him the trouble. As he would 
hear not another word in their favor, the prisoners were 
now led away and thrown into a dungeon, where the jailer 
advised them to go to sleep as soon as possible, because 
the Minotaur was in the habit of calling for breakfast 
early. The seven maidens and six of the young men soon 
sobbed themselves to slumber. But Theseus was not like 

5 


m 


TANGLE WOOD TALES 


them. He felt conscious that he was wiser, and braver, 
and stronger than his companions, and that therefore he 
had the responsibility of all their lives upon him, and 
must consider whether there was no way to save them, 
even in this last extremity. So he kept himself awake, 
and paced to and fro across the gloomy dungeon in which 
they were shut up. 

54. Just before midnight, the door was softly unbarred, 
and the gentle Ariadne showed herself, with a torch in 
her hand. 

“ Are you awake, Prince Theseus ?” she whispered. 

“ Yes,” answered Theseus. “ With so little time to 
live, I do not choose to waste any of it in sleep.” 

“Then follow me,” said Ariadne, “and tread softly.” 

What had become of the jailer and the guards, Theseus 
never knew. But, however that might be, Ariadne opened 
all the doors, and led him forth from the darksome prison 
into the pleasant moonlight. 

55. “ Theseus,” said the maiden, “ you can now get on 
board your vessel, and sail away for Athens.” 

“ Ho,” answered the youug man; “I will never leave 
Crete unless I can first slay the Minotaur, and save my 
poor companions, and deliver Athens from this cruel 
tribute.” 

“I knew that this would be your resolution,” said 
Ariadne. “ Come, then, with me, brave Theseus. Here 
is your own sword, which the guards deprived you 
of. You will need it ; and pray Heaven you may use it 
well.” 

5G. Then she led Theseus along by the hand until they 
came to a dark, shadowy grove, where the moonlight 
wasted itself on the tops of the trees, without shedding 


THE MINOTAUR 


67 


hardly so much as a glimmering beam upon their path- 
way. After going a good way through this obscurity, 
they reached a high marble wall, which was overgrown 
with creeping plants, that made it shaggy with their 
verdure. The wall seemed to have no door, nor any win- 
dows, but rose up, lofty, and massive, and mysterious, 
and was neither to be clambered over, nor, so far as 
Theseus could perceive, to be passed through. Neverthe- 
less, Ariadne did but press one of her soft little fingers 
against a particular block of marble, and, though it looked 
as solid as any other part of the wall, it yielded to her 
touch, disclosing an entrance just wide enough to admit 
them. They crept through, and the marble stone swung 
back into its place. 

57. “ We are now,” said Ariadne, “ in the famous laby- 
rinth which Daedalus” (Dl'-dal-us), 1 built before he made 
himself a pair of wings, and flew away from our island 
like a bird. That Daedalus was a very cunning workman ; 
but of all his artful contrivances this labyrinth is the 
most wondrous. Were we to take but a few steps from 
the doorway, we might wander about all our lifetime, and 
never find it again. Yet in the very center of this laby- 
rinth is the Minotaur ; and, Theseus, you must go thither 
to seek him.” 

“ But how shall I ever find him,” asked Theseus, “ if 
the labyrinth so bewilders me as you say it will ? ” 

58. Just as he spoke, they heard a rough and very 


1 Daedalus. A mythical sculptor, architect, and mechanic, best known 
through his flight from the wrath of Minos. He built for himself and for his 
son, Icarus (E'-kar-us), wings of feathers and wax. Daedalus escaped by means 
of his wings to Sicily, but Icarus, despite his father’s warning, flew too near 
the sun. The wax melted and he fell into the sea. 


68 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


disagreeable roar, which greatly resembled the lowing of 
a fierce bull, but yet had some sort of sound like the 
human voice. Theseus even fancied a rude articulation 
in it, as if the creature that uttered it were trying to shape 
his hoarse breath into words. 

“ That is the Minotaur’s bellowing, ” whispered Ariadne, 
closely grasping the hand of Theseus, and pressing one of 
her own hands to her heart, which was all in a tremble. 
“You must follow that sound through the windings of 
the labyrinth, and by and by you will find him. Stay ! 
take the end of this silken string — I will hold the other 
end ; and then, if you win the victory, it will lead you 
again to this spot. Farewell, brave Theseus ! ” 

59. So the young man took the end of the silken string 
in his left hand, and his gold-hilted sword, ready drawn 
from its scabbard, in the other, and trod boldly into the 
inscrutable labyrinth. How this labyrinth was built is 
more than I can tell you, but so cunningly contrived 
a maze was never seen in the world, before nor since. 
Theseus had not taken five steps before he lost sight of 
Ariadne ; and in five more his head was growing dizzy. 
But still through these hollow avenues, now nearer, now 
farther off again, resounded the cry of the Minotaur ; and 
the sound was so fierce, so cruel, so ugly, so like a bull’s 
roar, and withal so like a human voice, and yet like 
neither of them, that the brave heart of Theseus grew 
sterner and angrier at every step. For he felt it an insult 
to the moon and sky, and to our kindly and simple Mother 
Earth, that such a monster should be allowed to exist. 

60. As he passed onward the clouds gathered over the 
moon, and the labyrinth grew so dusky that Theseus could 
no longer discern the bewilderment through which he 


THE MINOTAUR 


69 


was passing. He would have felt quite lost, and utterly 
hopeless of ever again walking in a straight path, if, every 
little while, he had not been conscious of a gentle twitch 
at the silken cord. Then he knew that the tender-hearted 
Ariadne was still holding the other end, and that she was 
fearing for him and hoping for him, and giving him just 
as much of her sympathy as if she were close by his side. 
But still he followed the dreadful roar of the Minotaur, 
which now grew louder and louder, and finally so very 
loud that Theseus fully expected to come close upon him 
at every new zigzag and wriggle of the path. And at last, 
in an open space, at the very center of the labyrinth, he 
did discern the hideous creature. 

61. Sure enough it was an ugly monster ! Only his 
horned head belonged to a bull ; and yet, somehow or 
other, he looked like a bull all over, waddling on his hind 
legs ; or, if you happened to view him in another way, 
he seemed wholly a man, and all the more monstrous for 
being so. And there he was, the wretched thing, with no 
society, no companion, no kind of a mate, living only to 
do mischief, and incapable of knowing what affection 
means. Theseus hated him and shuddered at him, and 
yet could not but be sensible of some sort of pity ; and all 
the more, the uglier and more detestable the creature 
was. For he kept striding to and fro, in a solitary frenzy 
of rage, continually emitting a hoarse roar, which was 
oddly mixed up with half-shaped words ; and, after lis- 
tening a while, Theseus understood that the Minotaur 
was saying to himself how miserable he was, and how 
hungry, and how he hated everybody, and how he longed 
to eat up the whole human race. 

62. Was Theseus afraid ? By no means. What ! a 


70 


TANGLE WOOD TALES 


hero like Theseus afraid ! Not, had the Minotaur had 
twenty bulls’ heads instead of one. Bold as he was, how- 
ever, it strengthened his valiant heart, just at this crisis, 
to feel a tremulous twitch at the silken cord, which he 
was still holding in his left hand. It was as if Ariadne 
were giving him all her might and courage ; and much as 
he already had, and little as she had to give, it made his 
own seem twice as much. And to confess the honest truth, 
he needed the whole, for now the Minotaur, turning sud- 
denly about, caught sight of Theseus, and instantly low- 
ered his horribly sharp horns, exactly as a mad bull does 
when he means to rush against an enemy. At the same 
time, he gave forth a tremendous roar, in which there 
was something like the words of human language, but all 
disjointed and shaken to pieces by passing through the 
gullet of a miserably enraged brute. 

63. Theseus could only guess what the creature intended 
to say, and that rather by his gestures than his words. 
Probably this was the sense of what he uttered : — 

“Ah, wretch of a human being! I’ll stick my horns 
through you, and toss you fifty feet high, and eat you up 
the moment you come down.” 

“Come on, then, and try it ! ” was all that Theseus 
deigned to reply ; for he was far too magnanimous to 
assault his enemy with insolent language. 

64. Without more words on either side, there ensued 
the most terrible fight between Theseus and the Minotaur 
that ever happened beneath the sun or moon. I really 
know not how it might have turned out, if the monster, 
in his first headlong rush against Theseus, had not missed 
him, by a hair’s-breadth, and broken one of his horns 
short off against the stone wall. On this mishap he bel- 


THE MINOTAUR 


71 


lowed so intolerably that a part of the labyrinth tumbled 
down, and all the inhabitants of Crete mistook the noise 
for a very heavy thunderstorm. Smarting with the pain, 
he galloped around the open space in so ridiculous a way 
that Theseus laughed at the memory of it long afterwards, 
though not precisely at the moment. After this, the two 
antagonists stood valiantly up to one another, and fought 
sword to horn for a long while. At last, the Minotaur 
made a run at Theseus, grazed his left side with his horn, 
and flung him down ; and thinking that he had stabbed 
him to the heart, he cut a great caper in the air, opened 
wide his bull mouth, and prepared to snap his head off. 
But Theseus by this time had leaped up, and caught the 
monster off his guard. Fetching a sword-stroke at him 
with all his force, he hit him fair upon the neck, and 
made his bull head roll six yards from his human body, 
which fell down flat upon the ground. 

65. So now the battle was ended. Immediately the 
moon shone out as brightly as if all the troubles of the 
world, and all the wickedness and the ugliness that 
infest human life, were past and gone forever. And 
Theseus as he leaned on his sword taking breath, felt an- 
other twitch of the silken cord ; for all through the ter- 
rible encounter, he had held it fast in his left hand. 
Eager to let Ariadne know of his success, he followed the 
guidance of the thread, and soon found himself at the 
entrance of the labyrinth. 

“Thou hast slain the monster,” cried Ariadne, clasp- 
ing her hands. 

“Thanks to thee, dear Ariadne,” answered Theseus, 
“I return victorious.” 

66. “Then,” said Ariadne, “we must quickly summon 


72 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


thy friends, and get them and thyself on board the vessel 
before dawn. If morning finds thee here, my father will 
avenge the Minotaur.” 

To make my story short, the poor captives were 
awakened, and, hardly knowing whether it was not a joy- 
ful dream, were told of what Theseus had done, and that 
they must set sail for Athens before daybreak. Hasten- 
ing down to the vessel, they all clambered on board, ex- 
cept Prince Theseus, who lingered behind them on the 
strand, holding Ariadne’s hand clasped in his own. 

67. “Dear maiden,” said he, “thou wilt surely go 
with us. Thou art too gentle and sweet a child for such 
an iron-hearted father as King Minos. He cares no more 
for thee than a granite rock cares for the little flower that 
grows in one of its crevices. But my father, King iEgeus, 
and my dear mother, HHhra, and all the fathers and 
mothers in Athens, and all the sons and daughters too, 
will love and honor thee as their benefactress. Come with 
us, then ; for King Minos will be very angry when he 
knows what thou hast done.” 

68. “No, Theseus,” the maiden said, pressing his 
hand, and then drawing hack a step or two, “ I cannot go 
with you. My father is old, and has nobody but myself 
to love him. Hard as you think his heart is, it would 
break to lose me. At first King Minos will be angry ; 
but he will soon forgive his only child ; and by and by he 
will rejoice, I know, that no more youths and maidens 
must come from Athens to be devoured by the Minotaur. 
I have saved you, Theseus, as much for my father’s sake 
as for your own. Farewell ! Heaven bless you ! ” 

All this was so true, and so maiden-like, and was spoken 
with so sweet a dignity, that Theseus could urge her no 


THE MINOTAUR 


73 


longer. Nothing remained for him, therefore, but to 
bid Ariadne an affectionate farewell, and to go on board 
the vessel, and set sail. 

69. In a few moments the white foam was hissing be- 
fore their prow, as Prince Theseus and his companions 
sailed out of the harbor, with a whistling breeze behind 
them. Talus, the brazen giant, on his never-ceasing sen- 
tinePs march, happened to be approaching that part of 
the coast ; and they saw him, by the glimmering of the 
moonbeams on his polished surface, while he was yet a 
great way off. As the figure moved like clockwork, how- 
ever, and could neither hasten his enormous strides nor 
retard them, he arrived at the port when they were just 
beyond the reach of his club. Nevertheless, straddling 
from headland to headland, as his custom was, Talus at- 
tempted to strike a blow at the vessel, and, overreaching 
himself, tumbled at full length into the sea, which splashed 
high over his gigantic shape, as when an iceberg falls 
down headlong. 

70. On the homeward voyage, the fourteen youths and 
damsels were in excellent spirits, as you may easily sup- 
pose. Thev spent most of their time in dancing, unless 
when the sidelong breeze made the deck slope too much. 
In due season they came within sight of the coast of At- 
tica, which was their native country. But here happened 
a sad misfortune. 

71. You will remember (what Theseus unfortunately 
forgot) that his father, King ^Egeus, had enjoined it 
upon him to hoist sunshiny sails, instead of black ones, 
in case he should overcome the Minotaur, and return vic- 
torious. In the joy of their success, however, and amidst 
the sports, dancing, and other merriment, with which 


74 


TANGLEWOOD TALES 


these young folks wore away the time, they never once 
thought whether their sails were black, white, or rainbow- 
colored, and, indeed, left it entirely to the mariners 
whether they had any sails at all. Thus the vessel re- 
turned, like a raven, with the same sable wings that had 
wafted her away. But poor King H£geus, day after day, 
infirm as he was, had clambered to the summit of a, cliff 
that overhung the sea, and there sat watching for Prince 
Theseus, homeward bound. No sooner did he behold the 
fatal blackness of the sails, than he concluded that his 
dear son, whom he loved so much, and felt so proud of, 
had been eaten by the Minotaur. He could not bear the 
thought of living any longer ; so, first flinging his crown 
and scepter into the sea 1 (useless baubles that they were 
to him now !) King iEgeus stooped forward, fell headlong 
over the cliff, and was drowned in the waves that foamed 
at its base ! 

72. This was melancholy news for Prince Theseus, who 
when he stepped ashore, found himself king of all the 
country, whether he would or no. However, he sent for 
his dear mother to Athens, and, by taking her advice in 
matters of state, became a very excellent monarch, and 
was greatly beloved by his people. 


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